


Rebirth

by Zeelian



Series: The Eternal Universe - Birth of a Dragon [3]
Category: Fantasy - Fandom, Original Work, Science Fiction - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Demons, Alternate Universe - Magic, Deities, F/M, Multi, Were-Creatures
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-23
Updated: 2018-10-07
Packaged: 2019-07-15 19:21:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 47,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16069637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zeelian/pseuds/Zeelian
Summary: After the death of his dantai Takeshi was saved by the Wolf and as he struggled to come to terms with the loss he also learned more about the destiny that Kiryu had spoken about.Given an offer to gain power from a powerful entity known only as the Avatar of Life he risked everything, abandoning his humanity to suffer the blood-curse.





	1. New Beginnings

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Beginnings_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

When Takeshi woke up he found himself in darkness, a soft warmth with a scent that reminded him of the malamutes surrounded him, focusing his senses he could hear movement close by and the sounds of breathing and heartbeats but the darkness was total.  
With a twinge of pain he reminded himself that it was all gone now, he could feel the gaping emptiness at the back of his mind where the presence of his bonded should be, Kasumi was still there, faint and inaccessible due to a wast distance separating them, but still there at least, without that he was sure he would have lost himself.  
Tears were burning his eyes, but there was no time to grieve now, he needed to assess his situation, and starting with figuring out where he was.

Slowly he tried to sit up but a sharp pain from his legs reminded him that they were broken, if not shattered, and the total blackness had him worried that his eyes had somehow been injured, blinding him.  
Something pulled at his arm a bit and he found an IV line but he couldn't reach the bag, and even if he had he would probably not be able to figure out what he was being given, hopefully it was just fluids.  
As he laid back down he heard shuffling and whining close to his head and soon he was lavished with eager licks from a tiny tongue as a puppy of some sort was greeting him in its own way before crawling onto his stomach and curling into a ball and promptly falling asleep.  
It told him that it was not their malamutes he was hearing and smelling, or at least not just them.  
Unable to further explore his surroundings he tried to make himself comfortable, but the pain kept on edge, it didn't matter for very long though as exhaustion claimed him and he fell back into a deep sleep.

He woke with a start as a rustling sound brought a warm light into the room when someone moved heavy furs away from a doorway and a male voice called out softly.  
“So, you are still alive pup? I feared you would become the next meal for the pack, but I guess you are stronger than you look.”  
The man approached slowly while lighting small lamps along the walls of what turned out to be a small cave, he looked neither young nor old and even in the dim light of the room Takeshi could tell that the man was of native heritage.  
He winced slightly as the man removed the soft fur covering his legs and began to poke and prod none to gently at the injuries.  
“You heal well for one not blessed by the Mother, another 2 or 3 moons and you should be fully healed, half the time of a normal person, but still much slower than the Blessed.”  
The man's voice faded into mumbling in a language Takeshi did not understand as he helped him into a seated position, propped up by bundles of furs.  
“Blessed?”  
Takeshi asks, confusion apparent in his voice.  
There were a hundred other questions he wanted to ask, but for some reason the odd statement had stuck in his mind  
“That, pup, is a story for another day. For now we need to get some liquids and nutrients into you. I have given you intravenous liquids, by my supplies are quickly running low and I would rather not spent it all if you are able to stomach some food and water.”  
The man pushed a bowl containing some kind of broth into his hands while he spoke, clearly expecting him to eat before standing up and moving toward the door.  
“I am Takeshi, Kage of the Kiryu and I give my gratitude for the aid I have been given. How may I address my host?”  
Takeshi called out after him, the words were formal, but they gave a feeling of familiarity and for some reason it felt right to address this man with the respect of formality.  
His host paused for a moment and then called over his shoulder as he exited the room,  
“I am Amarok, the ones that hold your leash calls me the 'Wolf', you may call me either.”  
Takeshi wasn't surprised, they had not seen any trace of people during their search, so the Wolf would be all that was out there.

Takeshi turned his attention toward the bowl of warm broth and tested it's scent before tasting it carefully, the feeling of respect towards Amarok did not mean he trusted him.  
Wolf may have saved his life, but his motivations for doing so remained to be seen.  
After deeming the broth to be safe, he slowly consumed what had turned out to be a simple, but delicious congee, it was quite runny, no doubt to ensure he got plenty of liquids and didn't overwhelm his stomach and had pieces of salmon and what looked like Ikura.  
The flavors were simple but balanced and it reminded him of an Ikura bowl, but with a smokey touch, both the fish and the roe had clearly been conserved by salting, smoking and drying then re-hydrated by adding it to the water while cooking the rice.  
He had barely had time to put the bowl to the side before Amarok appeared at the doorway carrying a tray holding a steaming pitcher and several small baskets smelling strongly of various herbs.  
“Good, you can eat. Let's hope it stays down.”

Putting the tray down he turned to Takeshi and pulled away the furs covering his legs before carefully unwrapping the bandages.  
“Let's take care of those legs of yours pup.”  
Unwrapping the soft leather revealed fresh herbs and under the herbs a strong smelling poultice covered wounds where bone had broken through skin as well as cuts from sharp ice.  
“Fortunately you were unconscious when I found you so I was able to clean your wounds and set the bones, you were lucky that the breaks were clean. Had to pick quite a bit of shrapnel out of you though, the first missile carried cluster-munitions.”  
Takeshi wasn't the least bit surprised to hear they had been attacked with banned weapons.  
Once the wounds were unwrapped he carefully washed them with warm water from the pitcher, the scent however told Takeshi that it was not just water.  
Not wanting to be treated without being sure of with what he sniffed lightly and started asking about the items on the tray.

“That water, it has Yarrow in it? Yarrow and honey? And something else I don't recognize.”  
Amarok paused and looked like he was considering if he should answer the questions or not, after a few seconds he put the pitcher down and spoke.  
“You have a keen nose on you pup. It is indeed Yarrow and honey, as well as Willow bark. Now pup, do you know what those do?”  
Takeshi was a bit surprised at the counter question but replied without much thought.  
“Honey prevents infections, Yarrow also prevents infections but also stems bleeding, Willow bark acts as a painkiller, but it is also anti-inflammatory and blood-thinning.”  
“Good, good. You have some knowledge of how to survive at least, pup.”  
Amarok grumbled with a satisfied tone.  
“How about this one, can you tell what it is?”  
He asked while handing Takeshi a handful of leaves.  
“Fresh scent, almost like cucumber. Given the circumstances I would guess it is comfrey, also known as Boneset or Knitbone for its traditional use to aid in mending bones.”  
Takeshi responded softly, Mizuki's lessons in herb-lore quickly coming to mind.  
“Excellent! Anything else you would use to treat yourself in your current predicament?”   
Amarok looked at Takeshi expectantly.  
“Let me think for a moment.”  
Takeshi paused as he recalled his lessons with Mizuki.  
“Externally I would add cloves for their anti-inflammatory and pain reducing properties and rosemary, also anti-inflammatory as well as antifungal and antiseptic. Willow bark tea with ginger, cinnamon and turmeric to reduce pain and also helps reduce risk of infections”  
He quickly listed what came to mind.  
“I am however not familiar enough with the local flora to tell what would actually be available here, perhaps you could teach me?”  
He added after a short pause.

But Amarok just continued mumbling to himself while reapplying a thick layer of comfrey poultice and wrapped it in large leafs and soft leather strips before looking up with a smile.  
“The pup is wise to ask for guidance when he lacks in knowledge, I may yet make a proper wolf out of you.”  
With those words he handed Takeshi a cup of fragrant herbal tea and a water-skin that at closer inspection revealed its contents to be willow bark tea.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Beginnings_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Takeshi was left to his own devices for a few hours before Amarok returned with another bowl of runny congee, this time with herbs, reindeer meat and juniper berries.  
“How is your stomach feeling? Handling the food okay?”  
He replaced the IV bag while he spoke.  
“Good for now, but I think it may be a good idea to stick with this food for a few days. I was out for quite a while, wasn't I?”  
“You were. It's been 9 days since the attack.”  
“9 days...”  
“It took me nearly a day to find you, and when I did you were walking with one foot in the afterlife. Shock, and blood loss had nearly claimed you and you had a nasty fever trying to fight of the infections.”  
“Thank you for saving me. It is a debt that will be hard to repay.”  
“You owe me nothing, pup. I have studied you, and your unit. You are honorable and your actions have saved many. And the Mother tells me you have a destiny to fulfill.”  
“The Mother?”  
“That is still for another day. For now eat and rest.”  
“Not much else I can do, is there?”  
“I'm afraid not. There is one thing you should take the time to do though.”  
“And that is?”  
“Grieve. You lost your pack. Your lovers.”  
Takeshi gave Amarok a questioning glare.  
“You spoke in your fever, calling out for them, telling them how much you loved them, begging for their forgiveness for not being able to protect them.”  
The burn of tears immediately returned and Takeshi struggled not to allow his feelings to show.  
“There is no shame in grieving. Allow yourself to feel the pain, shed your tears and allow them to cleanse you. Then heal, grow stronger, and avenge them.”

Takeshi knew that Amarok was right, he needed to allow himself to grieve, but it was deeply ingrained in him not to allow his emotions to show, even after forming the dantai bond he had struggled with it, despite them being broadcasted over the bonds.  
When he felt a hand on his shoulder he looked up again.  
“I will give you solitude if you wish for it, and I will offer silent company if that is what you want. I may not be much of a talker, but I will listen if you need to speak.”  
Takeshi nodded, but didn't speak, and Amarok interpreted it as an invitation to stay and when Takeshi began to examine his feelings, his pain, he found the presence of the calm aura to be soothing.  
He was still dominated by the emptiness, but when one of the pups bumped its head against his face with a whine he broke, and he wept into the soft fur.  
It didn't take long before the rest of the pups crowded around him, instinctively sensing his pain and wanting to soothe it.  
Surrounded by the pups and with Amarok's silent presence Takeshi wept until exhaustion claimed him and he fell into a fitful sleep, plagued by dark, disturbing, dreams.

When he woke up Amarok was still sitting next to him.  
“Feeling better?”  
“A little. Thank you for staying.”  
Takeshi was genuinely glad he had not been alone when he woke up, the dreams had been very unsettling.  
“It was nothing. I will go make you some food then we will have a look at the rest of your wounds, and see about getting you cleaned up, you are starting to smell rather ripe.”  
Takeshi just snorted at the face Amarok made when mentioning how he smelled, he could smell it himself, the lingering scent of fever, infection and wet dog was not a pleasant combination.  
When Amarok returned he carried another bowl of congee, this time it was salmon again, but a bit less runny, and with pieces of some sort of roots added in the mixture, and the supplies needed to care for Takeshi's wounds.  
“I added Valerian root to the brew to help you relax.”  
Takeshi nodded, it explained the pungent scent he was picking up from the cup, even the strong peppermint of the second cup didn't manage to cover it.  
“I think we can remove this now.”  
Amarok carefully removed the IV and unwrapped the bandages around his torso and arms while Takeshi ate and drank the bitter brew before washing the taste away with the strong peppermint.  
“Do you want me to help you get cleaned up, or would you prefer to manage on your own?”  
Takeshi considered the offer for a moment before accepting the fact that he would need help if he wanted it done properly.  
“Some help would be appreciated. Besides, it's not like you haven't already helped me take care of far more embarrassing things.”

It was obvious that Amarok had helped him relieve himself and cleaned him while he was unconscious.  
Now that he was awake he had been given an old water-skin to relieve himself in, his _other_ need to relieve himself had taken a bit more effort as he was unable to move much without assistance, but it had been dealt with while preserving as much of his dignity as possible under the circumstances.

“It's really a shame about your tattoo being damaged, it obviously took a lot of work.”  
Amarok was washing his back, carefully cleaning the various cuts to make sure there was no lingering infections where shrapnel had been removed.  
“It will heal.”  
Takeshi wasn't entirely sure why he told Amarok that, but he had a feeling he could trust the man.  
“That is good to hear.”  
Takeshi had a feeling there was more to those words than the obvious.  
“I think we will have to settle for just rinsing your hair with something to make sure you don't pick up any guests until you have healed enough for you to take a proper bath. Unless you are willing to cut it all off.”  
“I would indeed prefer to keep it.”  
“Had a feeling you would. So, pup. What would you suggest to use?”  
There was a teasing tone in the question and Takeshi allowed himself to rise to the challenge.  
“There are several essential oils that could do the job. Pennyroyal would be my first choice, but with the pups licking and chewing on my hair we better find something else. Same with things like clove, citronella, wintergreen and thyme.”  
Takeshi looked at the pups and adult wolves that shared the room with him.  
“Maybe lavender, cedar, sage or peppermint for a rinse? Yarrow powder, Diatomaceous Earth and Neem could be used for a dry treatment, but again, those could be irritating for eyes and noses.”  
Takeshi listed the treatments he could think of.  
“You truly do have a caring heart. Don't worry about my pack, they are far more resilient than your average canine. I mostly use essential oils of pennyroyal, cedar, clove, cinnamon, peppermint and geraniol to make sure we don't have any unwanted guests.”  
Amarok reassured him before bringing out a set of bottles with essential oils and added a few drops to a pitcher of warm water before undoing Takeshi's braid and carefully tucking the hair into a large pail rinsing his scalp with the mixture, allowing it to gather in the wooden container and soak his hair.  
He had obviously anticipated how things would go.

By the time his hair was dry and braided again Takeshi was half asleep, the healing was quickly draining his energy, and the extended lack of food didn't help.  
“How are you feeling?”  
“Tired, and hungry. I have always needed more food than most, and accelerating the healing drains my reserves quickly.”  
“Want to see if you can stomach a bit more meat and fat for your next meal?”  
“Please.”  
“Maybe a few pieces of muktuk for now?”  
“That sounds good. Could you add some of that salmon roe as well?”  
“Oh, liked that did you?”  
“Very much.”  
Amarok left with a snicker and returned a few minutes later with a small bowl with the promised treats which Takeshi slowly ate while paying attention to his stomach and much to his relief there were no adverse reactions so once the bowl was empty he made himself as comfortable as he could and went back to sleep.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Beginnings_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

The lack of daylight made it hard to tell the exact passage of time but Takeshi's internal clock told him about three days had passed since he woke up.  
Amarok had returned frequently to give him food and herbal tea as well as refilling the willow-bark tea and check on his wounds.  
Once they had determined he could handle more fat and protein the runny congee had quickly been replaced with a rich dish of caribou meat, savory herbs and juniper berries, thickened with a mix of grains and roots that Takeshi could not identify and topped of with chunks of cracklings still laden with fat.

He had meditated and entered the dreamscape but found no trace of the Ryujin, he could still feel her power within but much like his bond with Kasumi it was muted and held a distant feeling.  
Unable to move about and unable to pass time in the dreamscape Takeshi quickly grew bored and restless, there was no sign of Amarok outside of delivering food and the only thing that ever happened was the occasional dog sneaking in or out of the room, the adults would stay away from him but the pups would come over to play and snuggle.  
When Amarok finally showed up with food and the usual tray of herbs and tools Takeshi was about ready to crawl out of his skin out of sheer boredom.  
While Amarok tended to his legs he polished of his meal and started to ask some question about the current situation.  
“Amarok, if you do not mind me asking, where exactly are we?”  
“We are not far away from where you and your pack were attacked.”  
Amarok's reply was soft and there was an hint of uncertainty.  
“My team, their bodies, have they been properly buried?”  
“I am afraid not pup, the second explosion brought down a massive avalanche as well as a large part of the mountainside, you barely made it into the deeper part of the cave before the front collapsed and now the tunnel and the cave is gone. It would be a 2 day trek from the nearest exit to get to the ravine and only the Mother knows how long it would take to search the snow masses to find their remains.”  
Amarok looked pensive as he answered the question.  
“For what it's worth though, they are safe from scavengers where they are, I left a few of the pack there to keep away any that would disturb their remains and once you have healed you can go there and search for them yourself.”

Takeshi thought about the information for a while as Amarok worked on wrapping his legs back up, he did not want to wait months for his legs to heal before trying to find the bodies of the others, but he didn't have the energy to heal himself.  
Manifesting Kiryu to save his life had drained all his reserves and it would take a long time to recover it to a level where he could use it to intentionally heal himself.  
“You said that you estimated that it would take another 2-3 months for my legs to heal, is there any way to speed that up? You mentioned something about it being slow compared to a _Blessed_ , but you never did answer just what a _Blessed_ was. I will lose what little sanity I posses if I am to just sit in this room for months with nothing to do.”  
Amarok looked at him silently for a long time before standing up and gathering the supplies, as he walked of he spoke silently.  
“Sleep now pup, tomorrow I will give you the answers you seek.”  
With nothing else to do Takeshi did not have much of a choice but to do as suggested.

Takeshi woke up as Amarok came in with the usual breakfast and supplies, after helping him get cleaned up Amarok started caring for the injuries while Takeshi slowly ate the food provided.  
“So, pup, you wish to know what it means to be blessed by the Mother?.”  
Takeshi nodded but there was a long pause before Amarok continued, as if he was searching for words.  
“Many would believe what I am about to tell you to be nothing but fairy tales and superstitions, but I have a feeling that you will recognize it for the truth it is.”  
After securing the last strip of leather Amarok put the supplies aside and sat down on the fur-covered pallet next to the one that served as Takeshi's bed before continuing.  
“As you are surely aware of there are things in this world that can not be easily explained, the nature of the Mother's blessing is one of those things. My pack that you have seen move about in the cave are among those blessed. While they appear to be merely unusually large wolves they are so much more, they are smarter, faster and stronger than any other wolves out there. In a matter of days, even hours they can heal from wounds that would kill an ordinary wolf. And the oldest wolf in this pack is over 400 years old.”  
Takeshi listened silently as Amarok spoke, he had no reason to distrust the man's words, after all, his body while growing up, the youkai he knew, the bonds he had forged, were all proof that there were many strange, and amazing, things in the world.  
But to further discern between truth, lies and the many gray areas in between Takeshi allowed his Qi to swell up from within and gently wrap around them, carefully touching Amarok's aura to search for any hint of deception.  
“Ah, I knew you had it in you. Such a strong aura is not often found in a mere pup like yourself. Others might have taken offense to your searching, but I will not, a wise wolf does not blindly trust.”  
Amarok chuckled with a gleam in his eyes.

“A few of my pack, myself included are not only blessed by the Mother, but also by the Moon, and onto those blessed by the Moon comes the gift of the skinwalker.”  
“Wait, skinwalker, as in shapeshifter, lycanthrope. Werewolf?”  
Takeshi interrupted before instantly ducking his head slightly in apology for his rudeness.  
“Yes.”  
Amarok answered plainly, no trace of falsehood in his aura.  
“Lycanthrope and werewolf would be the least accurate of those. although my mother is indeed blessed with wolf-blood she is also blessed by the lynx, and my father carried the blood of the Kodiak bear.”  
Still there was no trace of lies in Amarok's aura.  
“Even though I'm sure you can sense that I'm being truthful I can still see your lingering doubts, so let me put them to rest once and for all.”  
With that Amarok rose and walked to the middle of the room and turned toward Takeshi.  
“Keep your senses open pup.”  
It began as a slight tremble, almost like a shimmer in Amarok's aura, then his eyes lit up with an unearthly glow as they became those of a wolf.  
Teeth lengthened into fangs and the jaw and nose grew into the muzzle of a wolf and the ears changed while they moved to the top the head.  
Nails grew into claws before his body began to twist and contort, arms lengthened and grew a thick covering of gray fur.  
The joints of his legs moved and changed, taking on the form of the hind legs of a wolf, a tail growing out behind him and for a moment he stood before Takeshi as half man, half wolf.  
Moments later he seemed to shrink in on himself and fall forward and shortly after there was only a large gray wolf.  
_“So, is this enough to settle your doubts once and for all, pup?”  
_ A tone rang through Takeshi's mind much like that of the dragon, the voice of Amarok the wolf spoken directly to his mind.  
“Yes, I do believe it is.”  
Takeshi responded with a hint of humor, it was indeed rather compelling proof.  
After that Amarok spent hours telling the known history of the blessed as well as legends going back to the very first humans to set foot in the harsh lands.

“You should sleep.”  
Amarok had brought another tray of food for Takeshi and spoken while he ate.  
“Amarok, would it be possible to get something fresh, raw, tomorrow? It would help my recovery.”  
“Anything in particular?”  
“Not really, fish, a rabbit, anything really as long as it's a fresh kill and raw.”  
After everything Amarok had just told him Takeshi felt more comfortable speaking about his own quirks.  
“Still carrying pure life energy to replenish you own?”  
“Yes. It would help me replenish the reiki that was spent in keeping me alive and is being constantly burned through as fast as I can replenish it to accelerate my healing and make sure I don't get any infections.”  
“If the weather clears I will see if we can catch something. If not you will have to settle for trout from the aquaponics. And don't worry, they are parasite free.”  
“I'm not concerned about parasites. My immune system is enhanced by my reiki so parasites won't be able to take hold.”

There was a reason why freshwater fish was not commonly used for sashimi, they were prone to carrying parasites that could infect a human, such as tapeworms.  
There were of course parasites in saltwater fish as well like cod worm, but the species that were prone to carrying them were also usually not served as sashimi.  
And while several of the species that were popular as sashimi also carried parasites those were usually fairly easy to find and remove, and unable to adapt to infect humans.

The next morning Amarok came in with the usual breakfast and supplies, then left and returned with a tub containing two beautiful, live, brook trouts, only to leave again and return with a second tub which made Takeshi do a double take and find himself picking his jaw up from his lap.  
The tub was separated into two smaller parts, one filled with tiny pink shrimp, the other with small squid, and in the low light of the room Takeshi could see a faint blue glow.  
“ _Sakura Ebi_ and _Hotaru-Ika_?! But... How?!”  
The small shrimp and squid were both saltwater creatures with a very limited habitat, and season.  
“You will understand soon enough. I trust they will be appreciated?”  
“Very much so.”  
Takeshi quickly dipped his hand in the tub and scooped up a few of the shrimp and inspected them.  
_“Itadakimasu!”_  
Plopping one of the still living shrimp in his mouth he chewed slowly and savored their sweetness and umami.  
_“Oishii...”_  
Amarok snickered softly at Takeshi's obvious enjoyment of the small creatures, clearly unbothered by the fact that he was eating them alive.  
When Amarok set up a small camping stove and a pot of water it was quite obvious that he had some knowledge about how hotaru-ika was usually served.  
They could be eaten as sashimi after removing the innards, cartilage and eyes, but if lightly boiled they could be eaten whole, allowing the umami rich, salty, innards to add flavor to noodles or rice.  
Putting a handful of the small squid into the boiling water Takeshi cleaned a few of the fresh ones and dropped the innards into the water as well while he waited.  
After enjoying the freshly cooked squid Takeshi turned his attention to the trout and quickly filleted it and cut the scraps and bones into chunks and put into the pot that he had used to boil the squid, it would make a good broth for his next meal.  
The fishes were quickly cut into suitable slices and he made short work of it.  
_“Gochisousama deshita!”_  
The rest of the shrimp and squid was eaten while Amarok continued to explain about himself, the wolves, what he called the blessing, and the Mother, some sort of a nature deity.

“Now you know what I and my pack are. You carry great potential yourself and you have been greatly wronged by those supposed to guide and protect. I can feel your desire for vengeance.”  
“Not mere desire! I swore an oath on my name, my blood and my blade that I would avenge their deaths, that vow is burned into my very soul, I **will** avenge them or die trying, only the life of Kasumi stands above that task!”  
Takeshi interrupted vehemently.  
“Such passion, such fiery resolution. Hold on to that pup and you might just survive what I intend to offer you.”  
Amarok spoke grimly.  
“Offer?”  
“Yes, offer. There are many way one can gain the blessing, me and the pack have our blessing by birth, others have earned it through years of struggle and devotion to the Mother. You however do not have that time if it is to be of any use to you, so I am going to offer you the third and final way to gain the blessing, to be tainted by a blood-curse.”  
“Why do I get a feeling I won't particularly like this?”  
“This is a most dangerous thing to try, most do not survive and from those that do many lose their sanity. But I see strength in you, I can feel that you have already been tested and found worthy by powers beyond our realm.”  
Takeshi took a deep breath before explaining about Kiryu.  
“A dragon, the one who tested me and found me worthy was a Dragon God, a Ryujin by the name of Kiryu, she marked me with her blood, bound herself into my very soul. However, she is distant and silent now, I know not why.”

For some reason Takeshi felt that he should tell Amarok, that it might be relevant to the offer being made.  
“Hmm, so that was the great power that moved you and protected you as the mountain came down around us.”  
Amarok hummed.  
“I am by no means an expert, but I believe that your Ryujin weakened herself greatly when she saved you, and she weakened you greatly as well, you were at death's door for over a week before you woke up. Perhaps she is merely distant to allow both of you rest to recover from the event?”  
Amarok's words rang true somehow and Takeshi nodded slowly.  
“Will it affect the offer?”  
He asked with slight hesitation in his voice, this was all new to him, he was rarely so far beyond his abilities and knowledge.  
“It will, but don't worry, it's to your benefit. Your soul has already accepted such a change once that will make it easier to accept it again.”  
Amarok put Takeshi's worries to rest as he began to explain what needed to be done.  
In the end it amounted to a blood transfusion of sorts, Amarok would bleed himself into a bowl, mix it with a mix of herbs and a ritual would be performed cursing the blood and then finally Takeshi would have to drink it all.  
Amarok would also cut into Takeshi's hands and add a small amount of his blood to the cuts, after that it would be up to Takeshi's strength and determination if he could survive and keep his sanity.  
“So are you ready to be reborn as a blessed?”

Takeshi paused for a moment, it was a big step, and a big risk, but he could feel the familiar feeling of destiny weighing on him and something told him this was supposed to be.  
“Hai!”  
There were no other words needed and Amarok left to prepare.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Beginnings_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Amarok returned shortly with a tray of supplies and began preparing for the ritual and while he did he spoke softly, explaining to Takeshi about what to expect, about a pain beyond mortal comprehension as his very soul would be altered into something more than it had been before.  
“You should find your center pup, reach out for whatever thought, whatever entity that might help you steel yourself against pain, anything to help anchor your soul and sanity.”

Takeshi merely nodded as he slipped into a meditative state and carefully tugged on his bond with Kasumi, bringing it into the forefront of his mind, he carefully added the memories of his unit and his deep love for all of them.  
Ramirez' cocky smile and quick wit, Daniels' mercurial temper and brilliant mind, Adannaya's deep balance and gentle voice and finally Eriksson's fiery passion and teasing laugh, and her dying wish that he avenge them and find her daughter to bring her the truth.  
Without even trying her last words flared into his mind, her declaration of love.  
He carefully wrapped it all up in the shadowy flames of the Ryujin and brought it into the very core of his soul, he was as ready as he would ever be.

Takeshi's barely noticed the pain as Amarok cut into his palms and added his blood before handing him the bowl and a distant voice he felt he should trust urged him to drink it all, so he did.  
The moment the last drop left the bowl an all-consuming pain shot through him and the world faded to darkness.

Through the pain he became aware of a new power surging through him, it was brilliant and immense beyond understanding, he could feel that while it meant him no harm it was beyond the concept of good or evil, it just was.  
It was a force of nature, raw, untamed, and utterly powerful, and like a force of nature it may not mean him any harm, but he could tell it could easily kill him without even noticing it had.  
The power fluctuated slightly and the darkness changed into a calm forest and a figure walking toward him.  
“Would I be correct in assuming that you are the Mother?”  
Takeshi addressed the female figure as it stopped in front of him.  
“I have many names, but you are right, my blessed children often refer to me as their mother.”  
“So what brings you here, and where is here?”  
“We are within your mindscape, it had yet to take a distinct form so I have drawn from your memories to give it, and myself a form so that we may speak.”  
She motioned for him to walk with her.  
“You have a very powerful soul, strong enough to resist Amarok's blood and reject it, and with it the power it carries. But once exposed to the power it must run its course and change you or it will kill you.”  
“I went into this knowing it may kill me, or drive me insane. But something told me it's supposed to be.”  
“You are right, you are meant to be here. This was always your destiny. But as you know, the fates are cruel mistresses.”  
“So being tried is my destiny, but whether I live or die is not decided...”  
“Indeed. But I have been given permission to aid you.”  
“Aid me how?”  
“We will walk, we will speak. I will distract you from my power, and your pain. I must warn you though, you will not be permitted to remember what I tell you for now. But you will, gradually as you learn about yourself and learn to control the new power you gain.”  
Takeshi nodded his understanding and offered his arm to the woman.

“So If I may ask, what exactly are you? You're not actually the beautiful young woman that I'm seeing, now are you?”  
“You're right, I'm not, what you see is just your mind trying to make sense of me and me projecting a mix of your own memories to give you an image to explain me. I am an Avatar, more precisely the Avatar of Life.”  
“And what is an Avatar?”  
“We are power, the sapient essence of a concept. As the Avatar of Life I **AM** life in its purest form, the essence of things living.”

She went on to explain that there were many Avatars, many different aspects, there were 3 distinct types of aspects though

Cardinal aspects representing things like life, death and the elements.  
Major aspects that represented things like order and chaos, light and dark, but also things like motherhood and various celestial bodies.  
Minor aspects that represented concepts and ideas, like defiance, but also physical locations like the spirit of a forest or lake.

Within the aspect there were ranks, at the top was the Prime, the strongest, the true essence, able to create and control Avatars of their aspect.  
Then came the Greater Avatars, they were the commanders, the right hand of the Prime, aiding with the control of the Lesser Avatars.

“And why are you here? I am but one life, insignificant in the grand scheme. No more, no less than any of your children.”  
Takeshi pushed his questions, seeking the truth of her motives.  
“And that is where you are wrong. You are one of the rarest creatures of this world, a birth like yours comes around only a handful of times each millennia, and most never survive through infancy. I have watched you since before you were born, sent my children into your path to help you survive.”  
“What am I?”  
“You are a rare chimera, an amalgamation of souls, human, demon, beast, all and neither, which means you are within my power to grant my blessing. I may only grant my blessing upon those who are not Other.”  
“But why? You are not doing this without reason.”  
“No, you are right, I'm not.”

Before she had a chance to start explaining Takeshi was distracted by the presence of another being in the distance, the black wings and robe told him it was a tengu, and somehow he knew it was someone he loved dearly.  
He turned to walk toward the newcomer, but the Mother stopped him.  
“No. I'm sorry, but that memory must remain lost for now. Trust me, you **will** remember when the time is right.”  
“But... I can feel it, my love... I know them, I love them.”  
“I know, they are someone who you love dearly. But for the two you to have a future together you need to remain oblivious to their existence.”  
She turned his head away and forced him to look at her before leaning in and kissing him, distracting him, and moments later the tengu was forgotten, and another moment later the entire encounter was washed from his mind.

They had walked for what felt like hours when the Mother turned to Takeshi with a solemn look on her face.  
"There is another memory that the Fates have instructed me to take away from you."  
"What, and why?"  
"You must not remember that Maria's lover was a demon, you need to forget about ever learning anything about him. You will remember it all if you ever meet him though."  
"And the why?"  
Takeshi reminded with a slightly sharp tone.  
"When you meet her daughter it will be important that you have no clue about her being anything other than human, no reason to suspect anything. Even I won't be allowed to remember until you do. The fates are fond of humankind and are determined to maximize your chances of achieving their goal of restoring this world."

“This world is dying. I'm losing my children one by one. And if this realm falls, the other realms will fall with it. The balance must be restored, and this is where you come in. With your power there is hope. Hope to restore the balance without mankind having to be destroyed.”  
“Destroyed?”  
“Yes. If the mortal realm falls all others fall with it. To prevent this fall, to retain the balance, mankind must stop their destruction of their world. If they do not, there will be no choice but to wipe them out to save the rest.”  
“So no pressure then.”  
Takeshi huffed, there wasn't really anything he could say to such a revelation.  
“Don't worry, there is time for you to grow, to figure things out, to find yourself, find companions, family, love. It's all part of your strength.”  
“I **had** all those things already! **I HAD THEM**!”  
Takeshi's voice rose in frustrated agitation but the powerful creature wasn't bothered, instead she simply wrapped her arms around him and gave him a light kiss at the corner of his mouth.  
“I know you did. And I know it won't matter that I tell you that there is a reason for it all. That you will understand one day why it had to be.”  
When she placed another soft peck at the other corner of his mouth he snapped and kissed her hard.  
Desperately needing an outlet for his emotions he took the familiar path, it was rough and bruising but she didn't resist or complain instead her arms tightened around him, letting him know she accepted his feelings, his pain, his fury, all of it without hesitation.  
“I am not a corporeal being, this is a mere projection, you can not harm or hurt me. Your emotions, your fury, I can handle it.”

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Beginnings_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Takeshi didn't know how long he had been out, he remembered the pain, he remembered losing himself, but he did not remember anything after that.  
Slowly he opened his eyes and winced with a groan as the light seemed to pierce through his skull and he decided he would wait a bit before trying that again.  
Suddenly a voice boomed at his side making him wince once again as it hurt his ears.

“Congratulations on surviving and welcome to your new life pup.”

 


	2. A Blessing and a Curse

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Blessing and a Curse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

The first thing Takeshi noticed when he woke up from what had in fact been Amarok gently calling his name, was that his already heightened senses had kicked into overdrive, the slightest sound like thunder to his ears and the scents he would normally barely have noticed now made his stomach turn, and the light, the infernal light, even the dim oil-lamps in the cave hurt his eyes as if he was staring into the midday sun.  
The second thing was that his legs were suddenly fully healed, no trace remained of his injuries.  
He fused on his senses, trying to suppress them, to force himself to handle the changes.

Amarok had not spoken again since the first greeting, calmly waiting for Takeshi to get some semblance of control over his new senses, and hours passed before Takeshi carefully opened his eyes again and looked around, still squinting slightly but no longer wincing at the dim light.  
_“Feeling better?”  
_ Amarok asked, using the telepathic voice of his animal form to spare Takeshi the strain of adjusting his hearing for now.  
“Hai.”  
Takeshi's voice little more than a whisper and yet he winced at the volume.  
_“Easy, reach within for the voice of your mind. You spoke of being able to communicate silently with your bonded , this should not be so different.”_  
Amarok instructed him silently.  
It took nearly an hour before Takeshi figured out how to communicate telepathically with someone he was not bonded to but once he did he had many questions for Amarok.

“ _Are my senses really supposed to be like this? The smells burn my nose and turn my stomach, even the sound of our heartbeats and breathing roar like thunder in my head, the slightest light burns like the sun.”  
_ The thoughts were tainted by pain as he finally was able to ask Amarok about the changes to his senses.  
_“It's different for everyone, as I told you, few survive and even fewer manage to keep their sanity. Your senses were extremely strong for a human before your blessing, I would guess that they are now extremely strong for a Blessed. But worry not, they can be controlled, like turning the volume dial on a radio the power of a Blessed can be tuned down until needed. I will leave you to your meditation, come join me in the next room when you feel ready.”_  
With that Amarok stood and walked out silently while Takeshi drifted back into his meditation to try and gain some control.

He quickly found himself in something similar to the dreamscape, but somehow he knew it was different, something told him this was his own soul, and something provided him with a word, mindscape.  
Within his soul there was a forest, and in the distance he could feel a deep calm pool of power with the crisp feeling of a clear winter night surrounded by the gentle warmth of a spring day, he guessed that would be _The Moon_ and _The Mother_ and in the darkest shadows of himself he could feel something prowling, something untamed, a predator just waiting for its time.  
He walked through the forest with the new power as his goal and he soon found himself in a clearing with a pond in the middle, the deep cold water was inviting somehow so he removed his clothes and entered it.  
It was cold, but he didn't feel chilled, instead it was calming, allowed him to gather his thoughts and find a semblance of peace.

He brought himself out of the deep state of meditation as he needed a higher level of awareness of his surrounding to try to control his new senses, he needed to feel.  
It wasn't easy though, his power level had changed drastically, and entirely new source of power had appeared within and he didn't know how to control the flow of energy, how to make it move according to his will.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Blessing and a Curse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

In the end it was hunger that drove Takeshi into the next room, the pain from the light and sounds made him dizzy but the hunger would simply not let him wait any longer and it seemed that getting breakfast in bed was no longer a service offered.  
As he entered the room a mouthwatering scent hit him and he quickly followed his nose, all else forgotten until he came across Amarok in a small annex.  
On a small table there was a plate piled high with raw meat and Takeshi instantly zeroed in on the still warm slabs of meat.  
Amarok grinned as he watched Takeshi focus on the food and when a low growl was heard he burst into laughter.  
“I see your hunger got the better of you pup. Your new body will demand a lot of food, especially fresh meat and even more so if you have recently recovered from an injury.”  
He kept grinning as he stepped aside to allow Takeshi his meal.  
“By the way pup, it is rather rude to growl at the person giving you food.”

The growling instantly stopped and Takeshi looked at Amarok with a startled look on his face.  
“Wait, I was actually growling?”  
“Indeed you were, like a rowdy pup guarding its favorite toy.”  
Amarok wheezed out between laughs.  
“But don't worry, you will get a hang of keeping those new instincts and reactions under control, now eat before you fall over.”  
Takeshi did not need to be told again as he all but inhaled the large pile of meat, it was not until he was standing there, carefully licking the blood from the plate and then his finger, that he realized he had just consumed nearly 5 kilo of raw meat, blood and all.  
“Am I going to eat like this often?”  
He asked a still grinning Amarok, he wasn't concerned about the fact that it was raw, it was the sheer amount of meat that was somewhat unsettling.  
“Not unless you get seriously injured often. You will find that your tastes might swing more towards the meats than before, and that your preference will run towards _very_ rare rather than well done. Other than that not much will change, maybe you will eat a bit more than before, but you did have a rather healthy appetite so it might not be much of a change.”  
Amarok replied, still struggling to keep his laughter at bay.

“Really, is watching me eat that amusing?”  
Takeshi asked with a hint of annoyance in his voice.  
“No, I can't say that it is.”  
Amarok responded soberly and then broke down into guffawing and continued with tears in his eyes.  
“However watching you walk around with your ears swiveling on top of your head and a tail wagging away behind you is.”  
Takeshi instantly brought his hands to his head, and true to Amarok's words he found a pair of wolf ears on top of his head and a slow look behind him confirmed the presence of a large black tail slowly swishing from side to side.  
With a not so internal groan he looked back at Amarok.  
“Instead of laughing **your** _tail_ off how about you tell me how to fix this mess?”  
Amarok sobered up slightly but was still shaking with repressed laughter.  
“Don't worry, partial transformations are not uncommon in young pups, once you learn some control over your new abilities it should stop. Now stop twitching and let me have a look at you!”

Amarok slowly walked around Takeshi as he evaluated his new _looks_ , earning himself a few growls and snarls as he poked and prodded.  
“Hmm, a well balanced partial transformation. The joints of the legs slightly shifted, enough to enhance speed and jumping ability but still easy to hide under a pair of wide pants. The tail enhances balance but it should be no great loss to remove it, from the way you move you obviously have a well trained balance.”  
Taking one of Takeshi's hands he carefully turned it over and inspected his nails.  
“Nails slightly elongated and clawed, extremely sharp and seems to be almost metallic in nature, how odd, perhaps a gift from your dragon?”  
Pulling at his lips to get a closer look at the teeth earned Amarok another growl but Takeshi managed to resist the rather compelling urge to bite him.  
“Elongated canines, clearly fanged and slightly altered dental structure with a double set of canines in both jaws, inner set less prominent. Nothing that should attract to much attention unless you you flash someone an extra wide smile.”

Locking eyes with Takeshi earned Amarok a low rumbling growl and a slight shift in stance as Takeshi fought a sudden urge to fight, to force submission, _to_ _dominate_?  
“Easy pup, I am no threat and I have no intention to fight.”  
Amarok soothed him while looking away and the growling slowly subsided and Takeshi's posture relaxed.  
“All these new urges, they are hard to control, before when you looked at my teeth there was this near overwhelming urge to bite, and just now all I could think was to force you to submit.”  
Takeshi tried to focus on his breathing as he spoke.  
“I know, it's the instincts of the wolf making themselves known, to look someone in the eye can be a challenge, especially in a situation like this. You are a lone wolf, deep within the territory of an established pack, faced with the Alpha of that pack. Most would feel the urge to submit to avoid a fight, but you are strong, a leader and an Alpha in your own right and you instinctively know that you are stronger than me, my only advantage right now is my greater experience in using the blessing. This gives you the urge to try to make me submit, to best me and claim my pack as your own.”  
Amarok spoke with soft tones and averted his eyes to allow Takeshi to regain control over his new instincts and once he was calm he continued.

“Let's do this again, I am going to look you in the eyes, try not to show any reaction even if the urge is there, do try to tell me off instead of attacking if it becomes too much though.”  
Once again Takeshi felt the urge to fight, but this time he was ready for it and managed to keep himself under control as Amarok looked closely at his eyes.  
“Hmm, slit pupils, almost like a cat or a reptile, the pattern of the iris is clearly reptilian, the color however is unlike anything I have ever seen, it is like the corona of the sun, bright golds, deep oranges and even dark reds, all glowing and shifting like fire, I guess this might be another dragon trait shining through.”  
Amarok shook his head slightly as he moved on to the ears, reaching up and tweaking them which made them twitch and earned him another low growl, but this time the growl was more controlled, intentional rather than a slipped instinct.  
“These will most definitely have to go unless you intend to suffer the discomfort of covering them wherever you go.”  
Amarok gave them another, intentional, tweak and this time the growl turned into a soft rumbling as Takeshi found himself almost overwhelmed by an oddly pleasurable feeling, but before he could explore the feeling deeper Amarok stepped back and took one last look.  
“Well balanced, strong, a few oddities here and there, but all in all an excellent specimen of a black wolfling.”

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Blessing and a Curse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

They walked back into the main room and Amarok instructed Takeshi to take a seat on a pile of furs in the middle of the room.  
“How about we start with the basics right away? The sooner we can get you ready to head out and reclaim the remains of your pack the sooner you can start some real training.”  
Takeshi gave a sharp nod and the customary _Hai Sensei_ which made Amarok chuckle at the reaction as he took a seat in front of him.

“Let's start by getting that transformation sorted. Beginning with those ears, focus your inner eye on how you look, now narrow your focus on your ears, see yourself with human ears, enforce your will into this image, will yourself to become what you see with your mind's eye.”  
The effect was near instant as the wolf-ears seemed to melt away and human ears re-appeared in their proper place.  
“Good good! No problems there, slightly pointy looking but not much. Let's move on to the tail, will it away.”  
Takeshi did as asked without much effort and waited quietly for the next task.  
“You look human enough for now, let's see if we can't head in the other direction. Picture a wolf, large and black. Once you have a good picture in your mind you simply will yourself to become it the same way you willed yourself to look more human again.”

As Takeshi focused on building the image of a wolf he could feel the untamed presence in the back of his mind begin to stir and from the shadows emerged a huge black wolf, the beast would have to be over 100kg if it had actually had a body.  
Its form carried a wild presence, it was power and instinct but its fur reminded Takeshi a bit of Kiryu's flames, darker than black as if it was draining the light from its surrounding and yet somewhat transparent around the edges, as if its form wasn't entirely physical.  
Taking in its appearance he quickly shifted his focus and willed his body to take its form and then there was chaos.  
He could feel his body shift and twist, he knew the transformation was a success but somehow he found himself locked away, he could hear Amarok's alarmed exclamations and he could see himself move closer but he had no control.  
He could feel whatever was in control, it was like a rabid beast, out of control and out for blood.  
Takeshi desperately tried to regain control before his body could injure or kill Amarok or any of the wolves but he was unable to get a hold of the entity controlling his body and as a last ditch effort he grabbed at the bond with the ryujin and pulled hard as he cried out in desperation.  
_“Kiryu!”_  
There was a moment of stillness and then his mind seemed to explode as the full force of the bond with the dragon returned and with the bond, her form returned within his mind.  
_**“Stay back!”**_  
She roared as she charged the beast that was controlling him, with fangs snapping she landed on its back and dug her clawed feet in, forcing it to the floor, flames roaring to life as she sang incantations of dragon-magic.  
The moment the sharp claws dug into the creature's back Takeshi felt a burning pain in his own back, it would seem he was somehow connected to this beast within.

Takeshi couldn't help the feeling of awe that the hauntingly beautiful song invoked in him, he had always found her voice to be beautiful when she sang, and now with her magic infused to her song it was even more beautiful.  
He watched as flames became chains and soon the snarling beast was muzzled and bound tightly as Kiryu locked it away within the power of the blessing which had risen and formed a cage of vines.  
As soon as the blessing enclosed the beast he found himself in control of his body, standing face to face with an rather alarmed Amarok.  
“Hey! Pup are you with us?”  
Amarok questioned tensely.  
“ _I am. My apologies, it seems I gained something troublesome, a beast in the form of a wolf, I assume appearing as I do. It somehow took control when I changed my form and I was unable to get it back, but Kiryu was able to subdue and bind it.”_  
He quickly explain what had happened.  
“Ah, I have never heard of such a thing before, but you were hardly a normal human to begin with.”  
Amarok nodded slowly.  
“So she is back than, that dragon of yours?”  
Takeshi nodded, finding the motion to be awkward in the form of a wolf.  
“Excellent. Now how about you keep still so I can have a look at you?”

Takeshi huffed and did as asked, and once again Amarok poked and prodded, pulled at his fur, tail and ears all while mumbling his observations with a pleased tone.  
When he finally stepped back he had a wide grin on his face.  
“Not only are you the biggest wolf, blessed or not, I have ever seen, you seem to be in extraordinary good health and as far as I can tell, perfect in every way.”  
Amarok stated as he tried to reach to scratch behind Takeshi's ear, once again earning himself a growl.  
_“Glad you approve. Now is there anything else you want me to do, or can we go find my team?”_  
Takeshi asked with a hint of a snarl in his tone.  
“Nothing much, just try to move around a bit to get a feel for your body and balance in that form. Meanwhile I will go gather your clothing, you will need it unless you intend to try and remain in that form for the entire time out there. As you surely noted your clothes changes when you do, natural materials such as cloth, plant fibers, leather and unrefined stone and ores can be stored within the blessing, some of the more skilled skinwalkers are able to store other things as well, such as weapons crafted from refined metals.”  
After a quick explanation Amarok walked into the room where Takeshi had spent his previous time.  
_“Weapons will not be any issue, the only weapon I need is my Ryuken and that is stored within my soul.”_  
Takeshi sent his thoughts after Amarok's retreating back.

 

A few minutes later Amarok walked back into the main room with a bundle of cloth and fur in his arms.  
“Luckily I was able to salvage your clothes as nothing I have is big enough for you, you are quite large in any form. Here, put them on so we can get going.”  
He tossed the bundle on a low pallet before taking a seat.  
“Let's see how you do with returning to looking human.”  
Takeshi focused on the internal image of himself and the change was swift, as soon as he was himself again he put his warm clothing on.  
“Hmm, still not entire human that form.”  
Amarok noted from his seat as Takeshi secured the last items of clothing and then returned to the wolf form.  
He almost instantly returned to a human form and checked his clothing before going back to wolf, and yet again to human, this time with much less clothing.  
“Interesting, it seems I don't actually need to bring all the items back when I return to this form, this could be most useful.”  
“That's right. It's rather impressing though that you figured it out so fast.”

Takeshi paused for a moment, considering the possibility that it might solve an issue that had been bothering him.  
He still had the communications implant embedded in his skull behind the ear, it was inactive now, but they were deep within the mountain but it might activate again once he went outside, revealing that he was alive.  
He had considered asking Amarok to remove it, especially now that his ability to heal was further improved, but maybe he could just reject it from his body when he shifted.  
Carefully shifting back to the wold form he focused on the energies of his body and quickly found what didn't belong and when he returned to human again he had it in his hand.  
“Would you put this in a secure container please, we don't want them to be able to locate it with a directed scan.”  
“Whoa! You shifted with **that** thing inside you? That shouldn't have been possible...”  
“Maybe since I had it within me before? Somehow making the new power recognizing it as a part of me?  
“Perhaps.”  
Amarok didn't sound convinced though.

“ _Great Mother, just what have you encouraged me to create?”_  
Amarok kept his thoughts to himself, to Takeshi he merely nodded his agreement.  
Takeshi paused for a moment then pulled out the ryuken from his soul.  
“I have years of experience with hiding things within my soul.”  
“Impressive blade. It has power. May I have a closer look?”  
“It's a ryuken, like so many demonic blades it must never be drawn without tasting blood.”  
“And how much blood would be required?”  
“A few drops given willingly is enough payment.”  
“Then may I?”  
Amarok held out his hand in offering so Takeshi drew the ryuken from the saya and allowed him to study the black crystalline blade.  
“It's beautiful.”  
When Amarok was about to run his finger along the edge Takeshi stopped him.  
“Careful, the blade is extremely sharp, and a bit temperamental at times.”  
Amarok heeded the warning and carefully ran his finger along the edge and smeared a few drops of blood on the blade, and when he pulled his hand back the flames flared up for a moment, burning the blood away before Takeshi returned it to the saya and then to his soul.

“Is there anything else I need to do before we can go?”  
With his legs healed Takeshi was quickly growing impatient, he wanted to find the others as soon as possible.  
“No, let's go and find your pack and properly send them into the eternal grace of the Mother.”  
Amarok explained he would be teaching Takeshi some more along the way though as it was quite a walk to the exit nearest the location where Takeshi and the others had been attacked.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_A Blessing and a Curse_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Remember what I told you about shifters who stayed too long in their beast form?”  
“They can lose themselves, become little more than animals.”  
“And the reason?”  
“The instincts of the animal form can be powerful, but they are also simple. Especially if the person is emotionally unstable, or hurting, like I am, the simpler mind of the beast can be a reprieve, an escape from the pain.”  
Amarok had him walking alongside the pack in human form most of the time, only taking wolf form for short periods of time.  
“It's a lesson that young youkai are taught when they learn to take human form.”  
“Oh?”  
“Greater youkai are able to take human form, but they are born in their beast form and live the first stages of their childhood in their beast form, then once they get strong enough and their mind developed enough they learn to take human form.”  
Amarok nodded.  
“It's similar for the blessed.”  
“Upon successfully taking human form the baser of their demonic instincts separate from their higher awareness, from their logical self and forms an entirely new personality within them, a bit like how I have this beast within.”  
Amarok just nodded for him to continue, and Takeshi realized a possible explanation for the beast was the demonic energy he carried, he would have to explore it more when his mind was back in the game.  
“This instinctual being, the youma, is capable of taking control, and its influence is stronger while they are in their beast form.”  
“It sounds like you have had quite an interesting life, far beyond what can be found in your GCTI files.”  
“Oh, the GCTI know nothing.”  
“Now you made me curious.”

It only took a moment of consideration before Takeshi began to tell Amarok about his childhood, about everything he had been through.

“Do you want me to send a message to Kasumi? I can use my contacts to minimize the risk.”  
“No need. The GCTI will tell her I'm missing, presumed dead, but she knows I'm still alive and that's enough. We will contact her when it's safe, when the GCTI truly believes me to be dead.”  
There was something else Takeshi had been wanting to ask for though and the current offer had opened an opportunity to broach the subject.  
“There is something you could do for me though.”  
“Oh?”  
“Maria has a daughter, Emelie. I would be immensely grateful if you could use your contacts to locate her. Maybe even have someone keep an eye on her, keep her safe.”  
“Of course. I have a few contacts in Sweden who could help, including a few shapeshifters. There is a couple, pygmy owls, who are very skilled at surveillance, and pretty good fighters if needed.”  
“Thank you.”  
Amarok obviously picked up on Takeshi's slight hesitation at how easily he offered his aid and his contacts to the request.

“I know your senses tell you that I'm being honest with you. And I also know that you are suspicious, you still don't know me well enough to figure out my motives. And you are right, I do have my own motives, but I hope you can find it within you to trust me when I say I will not hide those from you if you but ask.”  
“And if I do ask now, what are your motives for helping me with this?”  
“The Mother has asked me to train you, help you grow stronger. And to do that you need to be able to focus on what you are doing, and you won't be able to do that if you are concerned about your promise to Maria, about the whereabouts and safety of her daughter.”  
“So you help me because your Avatar, your goddess, tells you to?”  
“Yes and no. Her desire that I aid you would have been enough on its own. But I have studied you since you were forced into the GCTI and I see within you a chance to take them down. To stop their corruption and abuse of power, their abuse of the innocent.”  
Amarok continued to tell Takeshi about how he had watched the world fall apart and that he agreed with the Mother that there was a chance that Takeshi may be able to stop it.

“I am older than I look pup. I have seen many things.”  
“How old **are** you if you don't mind me asking?”  
“I'm 328 years old.”  
“And here I thought you didn't look a day over 200.”  
Takeshi's quip made Amarok laugh, then flash his fangs with a slight growl.  
“You should know to respect your elders pup.”  
“ _Hai hai Jiji_.”

Takeshi turned his head slightly, momentarily baring his neck to Amarok as a sign of submission, but it was brief, showing that he didn't really submit, it was a token sign that he accepted Amarok as an elder and didn't want a fight.

“Your instincts are settling in nicely.”  
Amarok accepted the gesture with a gentle brush of clawed fingers against Takeshi's neck.  
“Like I said, I have experience dealing with youkai, baring one's neck is a common sign of submission or acceptance.”  
“And would a youkai have accepted this gesture right now?”  
“Not if they believed themselves strong enough to teach me a lesson about respectful address.”  
“I figured as much, your tone was off. Care to enlighten me to the details?”  
“I referred to you as Jiji, which can be a familiar way to address one's grandfather or other elderly man who you are very close with. But for a stranger, or someone you are not very close with it would mean something more along the lines of old codger.”  
“And yet, you meant no disrespect.”  
“No, I didn't.”  
“I think I might just learn to like your style pup.”

 


	3. Walking the Beyond

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Walking the Beyond_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


After nearly 2 days of walking through dark caves and tunnels even the light of the crescent moon reflected of the snow was enough to momentarily blind Takeshi as they stepped out from a narrow cave hidden in the mountainside and an icy wind brought a shiver down his spine.  
The rustling of fur at his side brought his attention to Amarok who had just stepped out from behind him and he greeted him with a slight nod as he watched the gray wolf turn into a man wearing caribou fur clothing and he followed his queue, retaking his own human form.  


“Are you okay pup? You look uncomfortable.”  
Amarok asked him once the transformation was completed.  
“I'm fine. I just need a moment to adjust to the light.”  
Takeshi grumbled back, he did not like how the new level of his senses disrupted his focus, for the first few moments it had been painful.  
“The light, it feels strange somehow, can't put my finger on it.”  
He mumbled half to himself, half to Amarok.  
“It's the moon, with the blessing you are connected to it, the power of the blessing flows with it, like a tide it is pulled and pushed by the phases of the moon. With the waning crescent our strength is flowing away from us and during the dark moon it is at its lowest.”  
Amarok began to explain.  
“But the same is true in the opposite, as the moon waxes we grow stronger and we peak with the full moon. A close moon makes us stronger and a distant one weaker, the eclipses also affect us as well as a range of rare lunar events, but that is a lesson for another day. For now we rest, go out there and enjoy the moonlight, but make sure you get some rest, we will head out early and there won't be much time to rest.”  
With that Amarok returned into the shelter of the caves to rest, leaving Takeshi to his own musings.  


Takeshi reached for the new power within and stepped away from the cave opening in the shape of the wolf and began to slowly explore the immediate vicinity, taking in the various scents that lingered in crisp, cold air.  
The fain sound of rustling and squeaking made his ears twitch and focus on a spot in the snow, instincts telling him there was food scurrying under the snow and he decided it would be a good exercise in using his new instincts so he slowly stalked toward the sound.  
Giving in to the instincts he pounced and dove headfirst into the snow, only to feel his prey, a lemming or maybe a vole, slipping away.  
He wasn't discouraged though and he soon found another one scurrying about under the snow and tried again, he didn't have much success though but he didn't give up.  
It was probably the 10th try when he felt his jaws close over something warm, alive, and bit down hard, ending its suffering with a crunch before pulling his head out of the snow and gobbling it down.  


“Well look who managed to catch himself a snack.”  
Amarok noted the blood on Takeshi's muzzle as he returned to the cave.  
“Took a few tries, catching rodents under the snow is easier said than done.”  
Takeshi shifted back and ate some of the food they had brought with them to get the taste of rodent out of his mouth.  
“It's good training. Requires you to be in tune with your senses and trust your instincts. So, how many tries did it take?”  
“Not sure, but about 10 something.”  
“That's not too bad. But you are good at listening to your instincts, relying on your senses, aren't you?”  
“I'm used to it, Tsukiko-sama always told me to trust my instincts, that they would not lead me astray.”  
“That's good. Now, go sleep. The pack will keep you warm, and I will make sure there is food for you when you wake up.”  
“And if I wake up first?”  
Amarok just laughed at Takeshi's question.  
“You won't. You are still new to the change, you will sleep deeply, and you will sleep for quite a few hours.”  


The predawn painted the world in blues as the sounds of Amarok moving around roused Takeshi from his slumber.  
“Good morning pup, ready to get moving?”  
Amarok spoke softly as he shoved a big bowl of gruel with pieces of mushrooms, salmon strips, some herbs and chunks of bear fat into Takeshi's hands.  
Takeshi mumbled a _Ohayou Jiji_ followed by the usual _Itadakimasu_ be he quickly emptied the bowl and thanked Amarok for the meal.  
“As ready as I'll ever be.”  
“You know I don't speak Japanese, right?”  
“Mhm. Need a translation?”  
“Not really. You go ahead and shift and wait for me outside.”  
Amarok called over his shoulder as he walked into a small annex near the cave exit.  


Takeshi did as asked and was joined by the other wolves that had decided to come along, after a few minutes Amarok came out dragging a large but simple travois stacked with hides and on the top, a few smaller travois were folded up.  
“Come here pup so I can strap you in”  
He called out with a smile.  
_“So I am to become a sled-dog now, am I?”_  
Takeshi's response carried equal parts annoyance and humor.  
“With your size and strength you should be able to pull all of this easily, and we do need some kind of shelter to rest during the dead of the night, and after the attack I am uncertain of the condition of any natural shelters. We also need some way to transport the bodies of your pack if we manage to find them.”  
_“_ _ **When**_ _we find them!”_  
Takeshi interrupted with a growl.  
“Fine fine, **when** we find them.”  
Amarok chuckled as he fastened the contraption over Takeshi's withers and around his chest.  
“There, try to move around a bit and tell me how it fits.”  
Takeshi slowly circled the clearing to get used to the feeling before breaking into a run, finding the contraption to be surprisingly comfortable he let Amarok know so.  
“Good, let me know if anything changes and I will try to adjust it.”  
Amarok did one last check to make sure everything was secured tightly before shifting into his wolf form and calling out to the pack with a series of baying barks as he took off running, Takeshi at his heels and the rest of the pack falling in behind them.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Walking the Beyond_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


Around midday the pack became agitated as they caught the scent of moose and the anticipation of a hunt infected them, after an hour of tracking the large animal came into sight and Amarok released Takeshi from the travois before the real hunt started.  
As Amarok was about to explain the basics of hunting as a wolf Takeshi interrupted him.  
_“I have hunted as a human child with nothing but my bare hands, I think I am capable of doing so as a wolf. I can feel the instincts singing to me.”_  
_“If you say so. Just don't complain of you end up hungry, the pack won't share if you don't pull your weight.”_  
The hunt was surprisingly easy and was quickly over as the pack ushered the moose into the ambush where Takeshi and Amarok lay in waiting.  
Takeshi felt an unfamiliar thrill run through his body as he launched himself at the moose and the force of his charge and sheer size of his body knocked it of balance, making it easy to close his maw over the sensitive throat and clamp down, effectively cutting of air and blood.  
With a vicious twist of his body he snapped the neck of his prey and howled his victory to the skies.  
The pack quickly had their fill before returning to the travois, once it was secured they headed back to the kill to collect the remaining meat and bring it with them.  


The cold night was spent in a shelter of hides hidden between a few small trees, Takeshi and Amarok only returning to their human forms long enough to raise the shelter, their wolf bodies much better adapted to the climate.  
It was late afternoon the second day when Takeshi spotted a small group of the malamutes that had pulled the sleds as they were trying to capture a fleet footed rabbit dashing through the snow.  
_“Good to see that at least some of them seem to be doing okay, we had 100 dogs total. We did lose one along the way though, took a bad fall and shattered a leg.”  
_ He told Amarok as he tried to see if he could catch any familiar scents, and as he did the gray wolf brushed up against him, a gesture of support.  
_“I can feel your pain. It really hurt you having to put it down, didn't it?”  
“It did. It didn't deserve to die, but I couldn't let it be in pain, there was nothing we could to to fix the leg.”_  


Shortly after he picked up a very familiar scent, the scent of his favorite mint-blend tea, it had been left in his sled when they had moved toward the ice-fall to inspect the possible entrance to the caves.  
Takeshi ran toward the scent as fast as the travois would let him while Amarok and the rest of the wolves had a hard time keeping up.  
Shortly after he arrived at the sheltered spot where they had left the gear and dogs.  
The dogs were long gone, but the sleds and gear was mostly unharmed, only the food-containers were damaged as the dogs had torn them apart to get to the precious food.  
_“Get me out of this blasted contraption!”  
_ He impatiently called to Amarok who was just arriving.  
_“Calm down pup,_ I'm not as fast as you are. _”_  
Amarok's response came mid transformation and he immediately began removing the harness that secured the travois and Takeshi shrugged out of it and transformed before he'd had a chance to undo all the ties.  
Takeshi quickly assessed the condition of the sleds and equipment and found them all to be in excellent condition.  
“Do you think the wolves would be willing to pull the sleds?”  
Takeshi asked once he was done with his inspection.  
“They would do it gladly to please you, in case you haven't noticed you have usurped my position as Alpha without even trying. And I haven't even started training you properly. They understand true power, not just strength but wisdom and spirit to make proper use of it. To them the fact that I am still alive despite you being stronger means that you are a clever leader who values the knowledge of those before you and does not waste the power and knowledge of a pack elder.”  
The response was not what Takeshi had expected, he knew the wolves liked him, but he did not think they considered him Alpha, pack leader.  
“How many wolves would you reckon it would take to comfortably pull the sleds? If at all possible I would like to salvage all of them, the materials can be repurposed into quite a few useful things.”  
Amarok nodded his agreement.  
“Indeed, metals are precious out here. Why don't you start searching the area and find the wolves I left as guards, they might have an idea where your pack-mates are and I will sort out how to get the sleds back to the den. To get all six of them back I will have to send for more wolves anyway, even if I count the ones left here that will be coming back with us.”  
“I will, thank you.”  
Takeshi nodded as he transformed once again.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Walking the Beyond_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


It was late evening before Takeshi returned with the guards to eat and rest, he had confirmed the locations of Ramirez and Daniels, though they were buried in the snow masses and would take some work to dig out.  
The wolves believed they knew the location of one more body but he had been unable to confirm it, as clouds had covered the moon it was much too dark to risk approaching the unstable cliff and snow masses where it was believed to be buried.  
“How did it go pup?”  
Amarok asked as he handed him a cup of tea, his own mint tea.  
“We have found Luis and D, one more location is known, I don't know who, but based on the location I believe it might be Shani. That leaves only Eriksson and I believe she might be located closer to the ice-fall, depends on how much the avalanche moved things up there.”  
He replied solemnly as he sipped the tea, a blend that Kasumi had given him last time he had seen her.  
“She must be getting worried by now.”  
He muttered to himself.  
“Who? Got a mate hidden away out there?”  
Amarok asked with a teasing smile.  
“Nah, Sumi.”  
“Didn't you say she knows you are alive?”  
“She does, the bond would break if I died. Now it's just muted. But she can probably sense that I have changed. And like I said, I can't risk contacting her.”  
Takeshi quickly explained.  
“You have mentioned this bond before, that you shared it with your pack, if you don't mind, could you explain a bit about it?”  
Taking a deep breath Takeshi considered the request, _Dantai_ was a well kept secret, but then again, he had already violated that secret by training his team in the way.  


“The bond is something my people call _Dantai_ , it is a special method of training warriors that in the end creates a bond so strong that one can feel what the other feel, even see and hear through their eyes and ears and communicate without words. The downside of this is that if a bonded dies it causes a tremendous pain in the other, not only do they feel the pain of death and every feeling of their bonded, the shattering of the bond itself can be enough to kill a person.”  
Takeshi explained calmly.  
“And you felt four of those bonds break almost at once? How in the world are you still alive pup?”  
The shock was clear in Amarok's voice.  
“My bond to Kasumi as well as Kiryu protected me, the dragon has quite a will when she is in the mood, and she has no intentions of allowing me to die.”  
Takeshi stoked the fire and added more fresh snow into the small kettle before continuing.  
“I think she actually took over my body, forcing it to move despite the injuries, I remember the first missile hitting the ice-fall, feeling Shani's death and then a few moments later the bonds with Luis and D shattered as well. Then I could feel Maria's bond falter and for a moment I was focused on protecting her from the pain of the others, then I could feel her injuries and knew she would not live. I swore an oath, on my name, my blade and my blood that I would avenge them. Then she died and Kiryu called out to me that a second attack was incoming, I tried to move into the cave but found I was unable to as debris had broken my legs, I tried to move anyway but all went black, the next thing I remember is waking up in your den.”  
Takeshi stared into the fire as he spoke, only pausing briefly to prepare more tea.  
When Takeshi said no more Amarok stood up and silently placed a hand on his shoulder before he walked into the simple lean-to that had been constructed out of hides to give shelter from the harsh weather.  
“Don't stay up all night contemplating that fire pup.”  
He offered no words of comfort, only the simple touch.  


When morning came around the clouds had lifted, leaving behind a thick layer of powder snow and clear skies cast the familiar deep blue of the pre-dawn.  
After a quick bowl of gruel the travois was loaded up with the supplies needed for the day as well as the smaller travois and the group headed out to the closest location to retrieve Ramirez body.  
Once they arrived and the travois was removed Takeshi and Amarok began to assess just how deep they would have to dig to reach their goal.  
“It's rather deep here, I would guess about 2 meters of hard packed avalanche on top of him.”  
Amarok quickly concluded.  
“Well, we better get digging then.”  
Takeshi replied dryly as he shifted and began to use strong legs and large paws to kick away the snow.  
_“Step back pup, I have a better way.”_  
Amarok called and as Takeshi turned to look he fell on his haunches as it was not the familiar gray wolf standing there but instead a huge Kodiak bear.  
_“I told you did I not? That my father's blessing was that of the bear and my mother carried the wolf-blood. I rarely use this form though, bears are solitary animals and its form is not very practical in a wolf den.”  
_ The laughter was clear in Amarok's tone as he stepped forward and began to shovel the snow away.  
_“Just, please. Be careful.”_  
Takeshi silently pleaded as he watched the bear tear through the snow masses.  
By midday both Ramirez and Adannaya's bodies had been recovered and they had begun the recovery of Daniels when Amarok called out to Takeshi.  
_“Why don't you take a few of the wolves and head up to the ice-fall and see if you find any trace of the last girl. I will make make sure this one is brought safely to the camp.”  
_ Takeshi nodded and called to the pack, but he still had a lot to learn about communicating with the wolves of the pack, though their high intelligence helped and after a few minutes he was able to split the group into two and bring half of them with him to search for Eriksson.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Walking the Beyond_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


When they finally found the location of Eriksson's body they had spent nearly a week searching the ravine and it took another two days to dig her out as the snow was mixed with large rocks that took quite a bit of effort to move without the risk of causing further damage to the body.  
“I'm so sorry love...”  
Takeshi leaned in and gently kissed her ice cold forehead before wrapping the fur around her and securing her body to the travois.  
“Pup, it's time we move.”  
Amarok's voice startled him slightly, he had been deep in though.  
“Yes.”  
He shifted and patiently waited for Amarok to secure him to the travois, he would pull Eriksson himself for the first part of the trip, though he had made it perfectly clear he would pull all of them at least part of the way.  


“Sleep, we will guard your loved ones.”  
Amarok entered the shelter where Takeshi was watching over the four bodies.  
“I don't want to. I can handle a week without sleep.”  
“I know you don't want to sleep. And I don't doubt that you can stay awake. But you shouldn't, and you don't need to.”  
Amarok sat down next to him and patted his lap.  
“Go on pup, make yourself comfortable and sleep. You are not alone.”  
With a sigh Takeshi moved a bit and laid down with Amarok's leg as a pillow, he was relieved that his host seemed to understand his need for closeness, and clearly didn't mind giving him quite a lot of it.  
He didn't want to admit it, even to himself, but Amarok had a point, in his emotionally unbalanced state he needed to get as much sleep as he could.  
“Thanks...”  
“Ssh, I said sleep.”  
Takeshi huffed in response, but he did close his eyes and tried to relax, he wasn't doing too good though.  
It wasn't until he felt Amarok's hand on his shoulder he was finally able to relax, and quickly fell asleep.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Walking the Beyond_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Do you have any special wishes or funeral rites to be performed for them?”  
They were walking through the maze like tunnels that lead back to the den when Amarok voiced his question.  
“Not really, only Shani had any form of spiritual or religious beliefs.”  
He carefully considered the question though, he hadn't allowed himself to think that far ahead, thinking about funeral arrangements made it all too real.  
“I will retrieve the scale each of them has embedded in their skin, it was once a part of the dragon that marks my body and it holds a small piece of their spirit. Once that is done I only ask that the are treated with dignity.”  
Takeshi paused for a moment as he recalled that Adannaya's amulet had been lost in the snow and with it her vial of dream-essence.  
“I will need to prepare some dream-essence for Shani, I don't know much about her people's traditions but I do know that it is considered a very bad omen to be sent into the afterlife without dream-herbs or essence.”  
Amarok nodded briefly before responding.  
“If there is anything I can do to help, just ask.”  
“I will.”  


When they returned to the den they had been gone three weeks and Amarok suggested they get a full night's sleep, but Takeshi didn't want to wait.  
“Please, I want to start cleaning their bodies, prepare them for the afterlife. I need soap, and do you have any clothes they could wear?”  
Amarok nodded with a sigh, he was clearly not happy about Takeshi's refusal to rest.  
“You are welcome to whatever you need from the stores, but first I want you to come with me. I believe I have a place that would be suitable as a final resting place for your pack.”  
He walked over to a small tunnel leading deeper into the mountain and waved for Takeshi to follow before grabbing and lighting a small torch.  


As they walked deeper into the mountain it became warmer and after nearly half an hour of walking through maze like tunnels Amarok placed the torch in a small holder in the tunnel wall.  
“Out of respect for the Mother and her children there will be no fire or man made light beyond this point”  
He explained as he pushed a series of hides out of the way, they acted like an airlock, but for the light of the torch and as Takeshi walked past the last one he found himself in a larger tunnel that defied anything he had ever seen or heard of.  


The walls and sides of the floor were covered in coral growths and from crystalline tubes in the ceiling drop like growths appeared and the path was overgrown with a rich, soft, moss.  
But as beautiful as all that was the most amazing part was the light, everything seemed to be bioluminescent, even the crystals were glowing.  
As they walked deeper into the tunnel anemones began to grow among the corals, all of them emitting their own light as tiny fireflies buzzed around them.  
Takeshi walked silently behind Amarok and was so taken by the sights he failed to notice that Amarok had stopped and almost lost his balance when he walked into his back.  


“Quite a sight isn't it?”  
Amarok asked him with a grin.  
“No kidding...”  
“This is just the beginning, the path to the Mother, beyond this bend lies the Sanctuary of the Mother, that is where the true wonders can be witnessed.”  
With that Amarok signaled for Takeshi to step forward around the corner.  
Takeshi stepped around the corner and into a huge cavern, the same bioluminescent growths were present everywhere and toward the back of the cave was a pool of the clearest water he had ever seen.  
Around the edges of the pool there were trees growing, beautiful weeping willows, every leaf appeared as if cut from emeralds, peridots and green garnets, gently swaying as if rustled by a breeze.  
Closer to the entrance there were a few gnarled sakura covered in blossoms in the various pink hues of rose quartz, morganite and kunzite, a few magnolias competing with their beauty.  
Other than the moss creeping across the floor and over the trunks of the trees every plant seemed to be cut from gemstones, countless colors of lilies, clinging bushes covered with a rainbow of roses, all the colors on the same bush.  
Takeshi could spot insects of living crystal flitting about, various spiders, praying mantis, beetles and even some stick insects moving around and in the air there was a wide selection of dragonflies and butterflies with crystal wings.  
As they moved toward the pool he could see small birds of paradise resting in the branches, even tiny peafowl with the males displaying their colors, as he got close he could see that there were hundreds of birds in the trees, all of them tiny like hummingbirds and like everything else he has seen so far in this cave they appeared as if cut from gemstones.  
At the very edge of the pool crabs crawled around and in its clear waters thousands of tiny crystal fish swam around, hiding under the pads of the waterlilies.  


“Come, there is one more thing for you to see, a place I think would make a fine final resting place for your pack”  
Amarok guided him toward an annex at the back of the cave, inside the annex a large wisteria spread its branches across the ceiling, glowing flowers of every color hanging down and casting a gentle light over the lush moss covering the floor.  
“The Mother will permit them to be laid to rest here, beneath the soul-tree, would that be acceptable?”  
“Yes, more than, it's perfect. I can feel there is power in this tree, pure life. It would be an honor to have them rest here and for what remains of their life to feed the strength of this tree.”  
Takeshi replied distractedly and after a few moment he felt compelled to address the tree directly.  
“I am Takeshi, Kage of the Kiryu and I would be honored to place the mortal shells of my bonded into your care.”  
He greeted the tree with a deep bow, one knee to the ground, and as his words ended the flowers rustled in non existing wind, causing them to sing like wind chimes and thousands of tiny crystal bells.  
“Come pup, let us retrieve and prepare you pack-mates for their final journey”  
Amarok called softly from the entrance to the annex.  


As they walked back through the cavern Amarok stopped by a small copse of flowers and inspected them.  
“Pup, this _dream-essence_ of yours, would it be similar to the herbs used for vision quests?”  
“I'm not sure, I could test them and see if they are similar enough.”  
“Well come here then, you will have to pick it yourself.”  
Amarok said as he pointed toward a small tree with what looked like small star fruits, only they were crystalline and glowing a pale blue, and upon closer inspection there was a deep purple and silver liquid swirling inside.  
“Pick the one that feels right.”  
Amarok told him as he took a step back to allow Takeshi easy access to the small tree and its odd fruits.  
Takeshi thought on it for a moment before sitting down and slipping into a meditative state, and once there he reached out with his aura, inspecting the fruits, but they all seemed silent, tiny blue flames flickering before his senses but just as he was about to try some other method one of the fruits seemed to respond, the pale blue flame flickering for a moment before growing into a larger flame and taking a deep purple, almost black, hue that reminded him of Kiryu's flaming mane and without thinking he reached out and picked the fruit.  
“This one, I don't even need to test it, Shani will be buried with this one.”  
Takeshi quickly reached back and used a sharp claw to cut some hair from the back of his head and braided it into a simple string and secured the small fruit to it, creating a simple pendant.  


“Good, now pick a flower or fruit for each of them so that they may all be buried equal.” Amarok told him with a gentle nudge and a slight nod.  
Takeshi quickly set to work, grateful for the consideration showed.  
After about an hour of searching the cave he had found one item each for them, a lovely ice blue rose halfway opened and inside the remaining bud was a flickering red like a small flame, it reminded him of Eriksson's passion hidden behind a cool surface.  
For Daniels he had found a lovely water lily, deep pinks, purples and blues at the center and fading into a pure milky white at the edges.  
As for Ramirez it was not a plant in the end, but a feather, one of the long tail feathers of one of the small peacocks, the tiny bird had simply walked up to where Takeshi was sitting and plucked one of the feathers, dropping it on the ground next to him, it immediately brought to mind Ramirez occasionally somewhat flamboyant personality .  
“I know you said flower or fruit, but that feather, would it be acceptable to take it for Luis?”  
He asked Amarok without touching it, he did not want to do anything to desecrate the obviously sacred place.  
“Yes, it was given freely by the bird, I would say it is a gift from the Mother for that very purpose.”  
Amarok nodded with a pleased smile.  
“Let's go then, the bodies needs to be cleaned and prepared.”  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Walking the Beyond_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Would you like a traditional potash soap, or some regular body wash?”  
Amarok was showing Takeshi around the storeroom to let him pick the items he needed to prepare the bodies for burial.  
“I don't think we should taint the sanctuary with the chemical concoction of body wash.”  
Takeshi instantly objected, and Amarok seemed pleased with the reaction.  
“I agree. I have a few whale oil soaps here, just pick the one you like.”  
Takeshi carefully picked up each wrapped bar of soap and gave it a gentle sniff until he found one he liked.  
“This one, it's cardamom, cinnamon, clove and star anise, right?”  
“Yes, it also has some sea salt in it. It's not made with whale oil though, that one is made with nut oils.”  
“Will it be okay for me to use this then? Those things must be very hard to get here.”  
“Of course, you may use anything you want from these stores. And it's not as hard as you think, the Sanctuary can produce any crop I can think of if I but ask for it.”  
With a nod and a few murmured words of gratitude Takeshi placed two bars of the soap in the basket along with a brush and a few strands of natural beads, combined with some of the kumo-silk thread from the supplies from the sleds he would make simple hair ties.  
“They will need clothes of some kind.”  
“This way. I probably won't have anything that fit's all that good, but I'm sure we will be able to find items that will at least look presentable.”  


When Amarok brought out the clothes he believed would be the best fit Takeshi slowly shook his head.  
“These are made with wolf pelts... Are they?”  
“Yes, they are made from the pelts of the fallen members of my pack, such is our ways.”  
“This is too much...”  
“No, it's not. These were always meant for you. I made them a long time ago but it has never felt right to wear them, or sell them, but this feels right.”  
With everything they needed piled on the small cart that Amarok used to move larger items they headed back to the room where the bodies had been left.  
The room had a small stream of ice cold water trickling through it but Amarok brought in pails of hot water from a nearby cavern and Takeshi picked up on the telltale smell of a hot spring.  
“You have an onsen down here?”  
“The Mother provides well for me. The crystals you saw in the Sanctuary can be manipulated, made to grow the way you want them to. This has been used to direct water from areas with thermal activity. I had intended to bring you there when we returned, but you insisted to do this first.”  
There was a hint of teasing in Amarok's voice that made Takeshi snort despite his solemn mood.  


“It's remarkable how undamaged they are.”  
Amarok was genuinely surprised at how pristine the bodies were considering how they had died.  
“Kiryu-sama protected their bodies, she couldn't save them, but she was able to use the power stored in the scales to prevent, and repair, most of the visible damage.”  
“She is kind, that dragon of yours.”  
“She is, when she wants to be.”  
Now it was Amarok's turn to make an amused snort and Takeshi could feel a slight surge of amused temper within and it was comforting to feel her again.  


After carefully washing the bodies they were carefully wrapped in large furs, Amarok had explained that they would be washed again in the Sanctuary before they were dressed.  
“Come pup, you need a bath as well.”  
“Indeed.”  
Despite having carefully washed the bodies, and his hands, Takeshi could feel a slight hint of the scent of death clinging to him and it made his skin crawl.  
Amarok led him through a tunnel down to a opening that was covered by a few skins and when they were pushed to the side steam bellowed out.  
Takeshi began washing himself in the small stream of overflow water from the spring at the back of the room, but as he was about to start washing his back and hair Amarok walked over and took the soap and loofah from his hands and began washing his back and carefully soap up his hair.  
After rinsing all the soap from his hair Amarok brought out a pitcher that smelled of vinegar and wooden container that smelled of warm spices and nuts.  
“Lye soap can be harsh on your hair, so I made a vinegar rinse and a simple conditioner for you.”  
Takeshi just nodded and allowed Amarok to rinse his hair before working the conditioner into his hair and and while Amarok braided and wrapped the hair atop of his head he inspected the contents of the wooden bowl.  
“Nut butters and spices, the Mother provides well.”  
“That she does.”  
"Could we make some to apply to their hair as well to keep it from tangling?”  
“Of course.”  
Amarok carefully pinned the braid to make sure it wouldn't come undone and fall into the water.  
“Would you like me to stay and keep you company?”  
“Please...”  
They sat in silence until Takeshi yawned rather loudly.  
“I think I should be getting some sleep.”  
“That might be a good idea.”  
Amarok agreed and moved to undo the braid.  
“Go ahead and dunk, the flow will have refreshed the water in the spring by morning.”  
Takeshi did as asked and once the conditioner was rinsed from his hair Amarok brushed it until it was dry then braided it.  
“Thank you for doing this.”  
“It's no bother. You are obviously a very tactile person, you need to touch and be touched to calm yourself.”  
“Yeah...”  
“It will never be a lover's touch, but I don't mind offering a familial, platonic, touch, as you clearly need it.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Walking the Beyond_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


The next day they returned to the cave of the Mother, four of the elder wolves joining them, each pulling a simple travois with the bodies of the team and the wolf fur clothes.  
Once washed they were dressed in the fur clothes and taken into the annex with the wisteria.  
When Takeshi stepped into the annex he could hear the chiming of the flowers and before his eyes the moss covering the floor pulled away like a carpet being rolled up to the side of a room, revealing four shallow graves.  


Amarok had once again stopped outside the annex and so had the wolves and when Takeshi turned around with a questioning look Amarok explained.  
“Only those chosen by the Mother may enter the chamber of the soul-tree without Her expressed permission, I might be one of the blessed, but I am not one of Her chosen. From here on you will have to complete the rituals yourself while the pack sings its songs from outside.”  
Takeshi nodded silently and stepped over to the first travois and bent down to pick up Ramirez body and carried it to the first grave and gently put it down.  
He worked silently to place each of the bodies into the graves and once done he kneeled by each of the graves and used a clawed hand to retrieve the small dragon scale embedded in the skin at the top of the sternum, and as he took the scale he replaced it with the gifts that had been selected the previous day.  
Once done he stepped back, unsure what would happen next, the moment he did he heard Amarok speak up from the entrance.  


“We offer these, bonded pack of the Chosen, into your eternal care so that their souls may forever rest with you as their mortal shells becomes one with the nature that brought them to life.”  
As soon as Amarok had finished the small speech the wolves raised their voices in an eerie howl and the moss slowly crept back, covering the graves as if they had never been there.  
The sound of the flowers suddenly changed from a simple chime into a voice.  
_**“Step forward my Chosen and say your last farewell to your bonded.”  
**_ As the words were spoken Takeshi could see the ghostly images of his unit form above the graves and somehow he knew, this was no mere image, this was indeed the souls of his team, standing before him one last time.  
Without thinking he fell to his knees and bowed as he pulled out the Kiryu-no-Ryuken and placed the blade in front of himself.  
“I failed you all and it cost you your lives. But I swear by my Name, my Blood and my Blade that I will do all in my power to avenge your deaths and bring truth and justice to your memories”  
He almost faltered as he saw a small black flame leap from the blade and in to the moss, slowly growing and taking the form of the dragon next to him.  
_**“I, Kiryu, Ryujin of the shadow-flame stand witness to the oath sworn by the one who wields my blade and by his will my full power will given to this task.”  
**_ As the voice of the dragon faded the chimes of the tree picked up once again.  
_**“I, Mother of all stand witness to the oath sworn by my chosen and by his will the power of the blessed is given to this task without restraint.”**_  
When the chimes toned down the souls of his team stepped forward one by one, each of them touching his shoulder and through that touch he could hear and feel their acceptance of his vow as well as their farewells, Eriksson was the last one to step forward and with her farewell was also her gratitude for the promise to find and protect her daughter as well as make sure she knew the truth of her mother.  
But the strongest sensation from her was love mixed with an apologetic feeling of regret.  
_“I wish had been able to overcome my fears and tell you how much I loved you while I was still alive.”_  
The words rang out clearly within his mind before Eriksson's image stepped back and joined the others and the moment it did the voice of the Mother once again rang out from the soul-tree.  


“ _ **Those scales, bring them to the tree and place them within the hollow of the trunk.”  
**_ Takeshi hesitated for a moment but after a slight nod from Kiryu he stepped forward and placed the four scales in a small hollow of the trunk.  
_**“Now remove one scale from your body and one from that of the dragon by your side as well and place them in the hollow.”**_  
Again Takeshi looked at Kiryu for a moment and the dragon once again nodded her consent and plucked a small scale form her body and gave it to him and he reached back and tore loose one of the scales of his tattoo and placed both scales next to the other four.  
_**“Now place this flower in the hollow and step back.”**_  
As the voice spoke one of the clusters of flowers fell from the wisteria and into Takeshi's hands and he stepped up and placed it above the scales.  
When he stepped back wines, moss and wolf lichen quickly covered the hollow in the trunk and moments later flowers began to sprout from the moss and and buds quickly formed and matured, and as they opened up to reveal four perfect, orange lilies, the spirit images of his unit faded away.  
Each petal formed of a bright orange crystal, the color alive and flickering like a flame and when looking closer Takeshi found that each of the dark stamen was a tiny flicker of Kiryu's black flames.  
_**“Take them and place them over your heart, against the tattoo of your dragon.”  
**_ Takeshi did as he was told and the moment he touched them he could feel that this was the scales given a new form, and when the flowers touched his skin they were absorbed into his body and became part of the tattoo, four vivid flowers held above his heart.  
“ _Sayuri_ , the orange lily, while lilies carry many meanings, the fiery _Sayuri_ symbolizes revenge.”  
Takeshi spoke quietly.  
“My gratitude Great Mother for granting the memories of my bonded this most fitting form”  
He bowed toward the tree before turning around, sheathing his blade and stepping out of the annex, something within telling him that it was done.  
A final chime from the wisteria called softly from behind.  


“ _ **Now my chosen, learn to live with the lands, learn the ways of my children, the great beasts that roam the land, the raptors of the skies and hunters that rule the great waters, know them all and truly become the chosen one and walk the path beyond.”**_

 


	4. Becoming

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Come on pup, lets get you good and drunk, and remember your loved ones.”  
Amarok gave Takeshi a gentle push to get him moving.  
Once back in the den Amarok brought out a few bottles of a slightly cloudy, purple, liquid that quickly turned out to be a very potent moonshine mixed with some sort of herbal concoction to increase its potency.  
“Damn, are you trying to make jet fuel? This stuff tastes horrible.”  
Takeshi struggled not to spit the vile substance out right away  
“This stuff is pretty much the only thing I can make myself that will get a blessed drunk.”  
“What is it?”  
“It's a mixture of neutral grain alcohol that has been distilled and filtered several times to about 95 mass percent. A filtered mash of wolfsbane tubers is added then fresh wolfsbane flowers which gives it the color.”  
“So in other words it's a deadly poison?”  
There was a cold , hard, edge to Takeshi's voice.  
“To a mortal human, yes. But with the Blessing comes an enhance physiology and the ability to rapidly counteract any toxins, including alcohol, making it virtually impossible for us to become drunk without a great deal of control, control you don't possess yet.”  
“So you poison me?”  
The tone had shifted to a more amused one.  
“There is a bit of truth to the legends about wolfsbane, about its effect on werewolves. The Blessed have a unique sensitivity to it, unlike other toxins we can't neutralize the substance, instead we actively counter the effects until we can flush it from our system. This makes it possible to combine it with a non lethal substances to allow the other substance to affect us.”  
“So by distracting our system with the wolfsbane we make ourselves susceptible to the alcohol.”  
“Exactly.”  
“Give me that.”  
Takeshi held out his hand for the bottle and took a deep swig of the purple liquid before shuddering at the bitter taste.  
He had to admit it held one hell of a kick though, he couldn't recall any time when he had become so intoxicated so quickly.  


“Here, these will help get rid of the taste.”  
Amarok offered Takeshi a plate of snacks, there was a selection of dried items, some smoked, some salted others unflavored and there was also a big pile of fresh grated horseradish and Takeshi eagerly grabbed a piece of smoked, dried meat and put a dab of horseradish on top.  
“Mmm... This is good.”  
Takeshi licked his lips and shook his head slightly as the potent fumes of the horseradish hit his nose.  
“Here, try this.”  
Another plate was offered, this time it was smoked salmon topped with a few shrimp and a generous dollop of whipped horseradish cream.  
Takeshi's half moan as he devoured the offered treat had Amarok snickering and offering him another piece.  
“So good food is the way to seduce you, is it?”  
“I thought you said..?”  
The surprised and somewhat questioning look that accompanied the half spoken question made Amarok's mood shift slightly, he had not intended to imply any form of interest.  
“Damn, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply.”  
Takeshi just nodded, he was clearly fairly intoxicated already.  
“So, would it work if that had been the intent?”  
“Hmm, not sure, I better have another.”  
Takeshi grabbed another of the entree style snacks and popped the entire thing in his mouth and chewed slowly.  
“Mmm. I do believe so.”  
The twitching at the corners of Takeshi's mouth broke the slightly tense mood and soon they were talking and laughing, while taking the occasional swig from their bottles to stay comfortably intoxicated.

“Wait, you're telling me she actually just walked up and kicked him in the nuts? After you already had him scared shitless with a sword to his throat?”  
“Mhm... More like ran actually. She kicked him so hard his feet left the ground and he was out cold before he landed.”  
Amarok winced in sympathetic phantom pain at Takeshi's rather detailed story about how he and Daniels had come across one of the recruits trying to rape a local girl at one of the training locations.  
Takeshi, who was significantly faster than Daniels when he wanted to had pulled the bastard off the terrified girl and placed his sword against his throat by the time Daniels arrived, and she just charged right up to him and let loose a groin kick that had made Takeshi almost feel sorry for the guy.  
Amarok looked at him for a moment as if questioning the truth of the story, then he broke down laughing.  
“I think I would have liked her a lot. She sounds like a rather _interesting_ character.”  
“Mhm... D had a mercurial temper, but once evoked, Maria's fury knew no limits. She was a nuke on a long fuse and she could hold a grudge like no other.”  
“I'm starting to see why you love them so deeply.”  
“How could I not? They were amazing. Each of them brilliant and strong in their own way. Kind, caring and loyal.”  
The laughter at Daniels' treatment of the would be rapist was replaced with bitter tears, Takeshi was far from done grieving for his unit.  
Amarok just moved over and sat down next to Takeshi, offering his support, and a shoulder to cry on.  
“Please, tell more about them.”  
Amarok gently urged Takeshi to keep talking.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Well I'll be damned, you actually pulled it off.”  
Amarok looked at Takeshi with wide eyes, surprised that he had been able to take the form of a Kodiak bear so soon.  
“It took me decades to learn a second form, and I am still unable to use my mother's lynx form. And you did it in just a month.”  
Takeshi actually felt sorry for Amarok as he abandoned the bear form and took the form of the lynx.  
“I'm pretty sure I will be able to learn more forms if I just study the animals.“  
“I don't know, I have never heard of anything like that.”  
“Every culture that has shapeshifter lore has legends about individuals with the power or skill to take any form. And you heard Her words after the funeral, about learning the ways of her children to truly become the chosen one.”  
“I heard it, but I just don't think that's what it means.”  
“We will see...”  
There was a hint of friendly challenge in Takeshi's voice.  
“Indeed we will. Care to make a wager?”  
Amarok rose to the challenge and challenged Takeshi in return, tempting him with a wager.  
“Oh? Now I'm curious. What kind of wager?”  
“How about if you fail, you teach me about your magic, and assist me in my work by building a financial structure that can back my work.”  
“Something not vulnerable to financial tracking regulations and won't require constant new identities and transfers of funds I assume?”  
“Exactly.”  
“And if I win?”  
“How about if you manage to learn a new form within 5 years I will show you hidden mines where you can find noble metals, including fair amounts of the platinum group. I also know of a few locations that are rich in Jade, even some Jadeite with some rather spectacular colors?”  
It was a very good wager and Takeshi intended to accept, but he couldn't resist teasing a bit.  
“What?! Not even a proper kiss?”  
Takeshi managed to sound so utterly devastated that Amarok snorted and promised him he would throw in a kiss if he managed to win within a year.”  
“Deal!”  
Takeshi instantly broke into a wide, happy, grin and held out his hand and Amarok took it and shook on it.  
“Why do I get the feeling I just sold my soul to the devil?”  
Amarok's question made Takeshi laugh before shifting back to a bear and start digging away the snow and dirt that covered one of Amarok's regular campsites.  
Once the ground was bare and they had manage to dig out the dirt and debris that had gathered in the firepit they made camp and prepared the fire.  
They would be staying out for a few weeks to hunt more meat to make sure they had enough to cover Takeshi's needs, and to allow him to eat plenty of fresh kills to build his reiki faster.  


“ _Be on your toes pup, it's coming your way.”  
“Hai hai Jiji, I can hear it.”_  
Moments later a moose broke through the underbrush trying to escape the wolves that were nipping at its hocks.  
Unfortunately it did exactly what they wanted it to, rushing headfirst into Takeshi's waiting jaws and he quickly used his power and weight to bring it down and snapped its neck.  
Normal wolves would take time to bring down such a large prey, wearing it out until it succumbs to blood loss, or shock, blessed wolves were larger, stronger and smarter, making their methods more effective, but even they usually needed a bit more work.  
Takeshi was significantly larger even than the blessed wolves, and a lot stronger, which allowed him to fairly easily snap the neck of his prey once he had knocked it to the ground.  
The wolves quickly pulled back a bit to allow Amarok and Takeshi to butcher moose, they carefully removed the hide and the stomach, intestines and bladder, all parts that were very useful when undamaged.  
The choice bits like liver and heart and the large muscles were removed next before cutting away the meat around the long leg-bones and the shoulder blades, they would be useful for crafting various items.  
It was too late to find any antlers though, they had already been dropped and consumed by the local rodents.  
After packing the meat and bones into the hide it was wrapped up and placed on the travois before Takeshi cracked open the skull and after using his reiki to check that it wasn't infected he divided the brain evenly between himself, Amarok and the wolves that had participated in the hunt.  
It wasn't much once equally divided, but the fatty morsel was a high energy treat to help replace what had been spent during the hunt.  
“Go on, it's all yours.”  
Takeshi called out to the wolves before shifting and letting Amarok strap him to the travois, and while they moved the meat back to the camp the wolves made short work of the remaining carcass.  


“Jiji, do you think it would be possible to construct a harness that I can get into myself once I am shifted?”  
Takeshi had been thinking bout how useful it would be if he could use a travois while out hunting on his own, that would significantly lessen the waste.  
“I don't know. But you are really good at bringing items with you into the shift, maybe we can make a harness that you wear into the shift that can be easily hooked up to slightly modified travois or sled?”  
“I guess that could work as well. I haven't really tested the limits for what I can bring with me into the shift.”  
“Maybe we should be testing that while wait for winter to give up its hold?”  
“Mhm... Sounds like a plan. I need to work on my shifts if I'm going to learn a new form in time to collect my price.”  
“You're nuts...”  
Amarok huffed at him while moving one of the slabs of meat from the hot rock it was searing on to one of the cooler rocks at the edge of the firepit to let it cook a bit longer.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“Come here pup. The messenger just delivered a package for you.”  
Amarok called for Takeshi and when he entered the common room of the den he was handed a small satchel with a waterproof document case.  
“What is it?”  
“It's the initial report on Maria's daughter, they have located her.”  
Takeshi quickly opened the case and started looking through the documents, there were both papers as well as a flex and several memory sticks with files, photo's and even a few video clips.  
“She's beautiful, just like her mother.”  
Amarok was flipping through the pictures while Takeshi read the files.  
“She seems to take after her mother a lot. According to her school records she also has her brains, and temper.”  


Emelie's report cards all showed that not only was she well above the curve for her grade in all subjects, she had also started school a year early, starting first grade as a 6 years old instead of 7 as was the norm in Sweden.  
The only negatives in her reports were comments about her having a temper, and getting into fights.  


“Could you have your contacts look into these fights, try to see if they can find out anything about why she fought?”  
“Of course. If there is anything you want them to pay extra attention to just write it down.”  
“Good.”  
Hisao had always been a firm believer that how and why someone fought was a good indicator of who they were and he had taught that to Takeshi, and Takeshi had found it to be a valuable lesson.  


Taking the pictures from Amarok he found himself agreeing, she was a beautiful little girl, her mother's blonde hair, but the eyes were more green than blue.  
“She's tiny...”  
Takeshi was surprised when he saw a picture of her along with her classmates.  
The pictures showed that she was significantly smaller than the others, more so than the age difference would account for, especially since her mother had been tall.  
There was of course the chance that the father had been very short, but it still caused a bit of concern.  
“Can they get hold of confidential records such as hospital records?”  
“They can, no problems. You want me to add it to the list?”  
“Yeah, especially any information regarding development curves.”  
“Ah, yes. Her mother was very tall.”  
“She was. Even for a Swedish woman.”  
“So you are worried there are health issues behind her short stature.”  
“Indeed.”  
“I will flag her medical records as priority data.”  
“Thanks.”  
Takeshi took another look at the photos before tucking them back into the file, she really was an adorable little girl and he was actually looking forward to seeing her grow up.  
As he did he froze slightly, deep within he felt a flicker of a familiar presence, Eriksson, but that should be impossible.  
Unless...  
“I need to go speak with the Mother.”  
He didn't wait for Amarok to respond, he just put the files to the side and hurried to the Sanctuary.  


“Please, I need to ask you a few questions.”  
_**“Go ahead child. I will answer if the Fates permit it.”**_  
“I was looking at the pictures of Maria's daughter and I swear I felt her presence, similar to how she would feel over the bond. Did I imagine it?”  
_**“You already know the answer to that, don't you?”**_  
“So I didn't, it was really her. But how?”  
_**“The scales held a fragment of their spirits. When I bound them to you the remainder of their spirits fused to it.”**_  
“So they are all truly with me?”  
_**“Yes. Your oath allows them to be bound to you, your soul sustaining them. It is still hard for them to manifest, but as you grow stronger so will they.”**_  
“So another thing I need to learn how to manage I guess.”  
_**“Yes, training will allow you to let them tap deeper into your power. For now though I will lend you power to allow them to rise.”**_  
Takeshi felt an intense rush of power, then he felt the presence of the others, Eriksson's presence was stronger though.  
“Maria?”  
_“Yes, it's me love, the others are here too, but they are letting me take most of the energy so that I can speak. Thank you for finding my little girl, for letting me see her. She's so beautiful.”  
_ “She is, she's amazing. Just like you.”  
Moments later he felt the power fade again and the presence of the others vanished.  
_**“Don't worry, they are still there. They will surface again when you are strong enough to bare their presence.”**_  
“Thank you.”  
_**“Any other questions?”**_  
“No, at least none I think you will answer.”  
His answer was met with an amused laughter and he shook his head as he left the annex with the soul tree.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


When spring finally came around Takeshi left the den and spent a lot of time hunting, stalking and studying the animals in the area.  
He had been out for nearly a month when he felt the approach of Amarok and a few of the wolves.  


“You look healthy pup. How have you been?”  
“Well enough.”  
“The solitude getting to you?”  
“Sometimes. It's mostly the grief though.”  
“You know you are more than welcome to stay with me in the den.”  
“I know, but I need to be alone to figure this out. And I need to learn.”  
“Fair enough. I came here to tell you it's time to start earning your keep though.”  
Amarok had made it clear early on that he expected Takeshi to earn his keep once he had a chance to adapt a bit.  
“Oh, what do you have in mind?”  
“The salmon run, you will help me catch and prepare king salmon for storage.”  
“Of course.”  


They headed back to the den and picked up what they needed, nets, building materials for smokehouses, and quite a lot of salt.  
“Now this isn't very traditional.”  
Takeshi poked one of the packed up military tents with his foot.  
“No, but they make excellent portable smokehouses.”  
“And these?”  
Takeshi poked a bundle of carbon fiber poles.  
“The structure of the tent isn't really ideal for hanging the fish so I use these for racks. I may live a mostly traditional life, but that doesn't mean I won't use modern materials and methods to make things easier.”  
The somewhat affronted tone made Takeshi laugh.  
“Of course not, I'm just teasing you. There's actually something I need as well, do you have some wire mesh somewhere?”  
“How fine?”  
“About 1 centimeter should do. If not I'll just string one myself.”  
“How about one of the sieves I use when panning for gold?”  
“That should work.”  
Amarok quickly dug through his storeroom and brought out a few sieves of different grade and Takeshi picked one that looked about right.  


The salmon run was hectic, but Takeshi actually enjoyed himself, they were fishing a little known spot fairly deep in the wild, but they got a lot of fish, and the fish was still early in the spawn cycle so the quality was great.  
“Shouldn't these be further into their cycle?”  
“Yes, but the Mother provides.”  
“Oh, I see.”  
It would seem the Avatar actually altered the spawning cycle of the salmon that came up their way to allow them a better quality catch.  


“You really have a thing for the roe, don't you?”  
Amarok was hanging over Takeshi's shoulder as he carefully rubbed a skein of roe against the sieve to separate the grains of roe before using a pair of chopsticks to get the last pieces free.  
“I do have a thing for fresh Ikura.”  
Takeshi agreed while carefully rinsing the roe.  
“Could you fetch the bag with the ingredients I brought with me?”  
“Of course.”  
Takeshi had convinced Amarok to order a few Japanese ingredients for him, things like a good shōyu, saké, mirin, katsuobushi and kombu, ingredients he now turned into a dashi based brine for his ikura.  
While the roe cured he cooked some rice and prepared it into the flavored sushi rice.  
“Here, try it.”  
He held out a piece of ikura gunkan sushi for Amarok and plopped another one in his own mouth.  
“I can see why, this is really good.”  
“Yeah, but I have to be careful not to take too many of the females, they need to be able to spawn.”  
“Don't worry, our nets only cover half the stream, the Mother will make sure enough of them pick the right side.”  
“So we don't need to worry at all?”  
“That's right, when she feels we have caught enough they will simply stop getting caught in our net.”  
“Remind me to thank her properly when we return.”  
“You should be able to reach her yourself. Meditate, look within, seek out the power of the blessing and she should be there.”  
“I will try when we are done working here.”  


Preparing all the salmon for long term storage was a lot of work due to the high volume in such a short time, each fish had to be cleaned and filleted then placed on racks which were placed into a simple smokehouse, some was salted as well for flavor.  
The smoke kept the blowflies away and added a bit of flavor, while the racks allowed air to circulate.  
Once they were smoked enough to keep the flies off most were moved to a second tent for drying, the drying tent had electric fans, which were powered by turbines placed into the flowing water, to aid the airflow.  


Takeshi was very pleased with the amount of roe he had been allowed to collect before they stopped getting caught and soon after no more of the pre-spawn fish remained.  
Their fishing trip was not over though, almost all salmon would die after spawning, and they rapidly deteriorated, but they were still perfectly fine as dog food, or in this case, wolf food.  
They would collect as much as they could and dry it for the pack.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


“ _I don't think I should shift while we are here. It's one thing if I walk as myself in the middle of nowhere but here the risk is too great.”_  
_“I agree. Just be careful, if you feel your control slipping leave and recover.”  
“I will, don't worry.”_  


They had traveled to the coast to hunt whales, they needed the fat to make it through winter, it was simply not feasible to buy the food they needed.  
Takeshi wanted to help, but there was too much people around, people with cameras, there to document the whale hunt, some were tourists but a lot of them were from various animal rights groups there to protest the traditional hunt.  


“Look at these poor dogs! Not only are they made to pull sleds all winter, they even force the poor things to work in the summer.”  
A group of people were approaching Amarok's light wagon, noticing Takeshi and the wolves resting in the shade of it.  
_“Jiji, you better come out here, got a pack of PETA-terrorists eyeing the rig, me and the others.”  
_ Takeshi reached out for Amarok, hoping he was close enough to hear the mental call, he was still having a hard time using the Blessed powers to communicate with someone he couldn't see.  
“Aww, come here poor baby. Let me get you out of that horrible thing.”  
One of the women in the group approached Takeshi, trying to reach for the heavy collar he was wearing.  
It was just for show though, the heavy collar and the rope tied to the wagon made people feel safer in the presence of the large wolves, though most believed them to be wolf hybrids, or just malamutes.  


“I wouldn't get any closer if I was you.”  
The sound of Amarok's voice made Takeshi sigh in relief, he would have defended the wagon and the wolves if he had to, but the other wolves, while blessed, were deeper into the instincts and could easily injure a careless human.  
“These aren't you domesticated little pet dogs, these are Alaskan gray wolves, they are not domesticated.”  
The group instantly started arguing about how horrible it was to force the poor _dogs_ to work, and how it was illegal to keep wolves as pets.  
The way Amarok sighed made it quite clear it was an argument he had before and he moved toward the wagon to retrieve something.  
_“Give them a bit of a show if they come closer.”_  
Amarok's thoughts brushed against Takeshi's mind as he dug around in the wagon.  
_“With pleasure.”_  
It didn't take long before the group tried to move in closer to crowd the wagon in what would normally have been an intimidating manner.  
Takeshi instantly rose and growled at the person closest to him, with his hackles up he looked even larger than he was and the man instantly pulled back and the others followed suite when the rest of the wolves rose and began growling.  
Moments later Amarok jumped down from the wagon and showed the group a pile of papers.  
“These wolves are all part of a genetic diversity program to preserve and restore gray wolf populations all over the world. They need to be somewhat accustomed to humans to make them manageable for breeding.”  
The group looked at the papers and after a while they moved on, but Takeshi and Amarok could both hear their whispers about trying to return later to _free_ the wolves.  
_“They are going to be trouble, are we good to leave tonight?”_  
Takeshi was slightly concerned, they couldn't afford to have the wagon damaged.  
“Yeah, we are good to leave, we just need to drop by the warehouse and finalize the orders, all the goods will be delivered to Fort Yukon by air freight, we will pick it up there.”  
_“And the whales?”_  
“I have a very good friend who I trust. They will see to that our catch is prepared for long term storage and dropped at a location close to one of the cave exists once winter is here.”  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


With the main stores replenished Takeshi spent what remained of the short summer studying the animals of Brooks range, but he also did a lot of foraging for all what nature had to offer, he could live purely on the meat and fish they had stored along with what the pack hunted, but he quickly found that he still preferred a more mixed diet.  
So he had wandered the mountains and the plains together with a few of the wolves, collecting wild nuts, seeds, roots and grains.  
As fall approached he gathered mushrooms and berries, and Amarok had showed him a hidden cave deep within the caves of the den where he could get his own salt as he had been unable to buy any, and Amarok had demanded he manage on his own as far as possible.  
He knew Amarok wouldn't object to him using the salt they had bought at the trade station as he had worked hard during that expedition, if only in wolf form, but he wanted to prove he could manage without that.  


There was something about Amarok that made Takeshi want to prove himself, to show that he could live of the lands, on his own if needed.  
Also the wandering had allowed him to deal with a lot of his grief, and he had figured out how to communicate with the Mother without needing to go to the Sanctuary, but he still preferred talking to the tree.  


As winter came around again Takeshi's studies shifted towards the Mother, and the blessing as well as many things about the ways of Amarok's people and other tribes with shapeshifters.  
He would spend weeks meditating under the soul-tree in the sanctuary of the Mother and he would spend the full moons in the pool in the sanctuary after he learned that the pool radiated and amplified the effects of the moon, he could feel the power seeping into his very soul and as time passed the representations of the Blessing within him changed shapes into the Sanctuary.  
There was a slight difference though, on the opposite side of the annex that held the soul-tree there was another annex gated by layers of barriers.  
Outermost was the crystalline wines of the sanctuary, behind those a moon gate sealed tight with multiple crescent moons forming an iris like shutter, behind that was an elaborately grated gate formed of his own reiki and finally the black flames of Kiryu's youki.  
Behind those barriers rested the still bound form of the beast and Takeshi knew that one day he would have to face it and find a way to release it without it controlling him, until that day his strength as a blessed would be a mere fraction of his potential.  


Much to Amarok's surprise and worry Takeshi managed to assume the form of several other animals during the winter, starting with the arctic fox.  
Thinking back on that event always made Takeshi smile.  


“I do believe you owe me a kiss.”  
Takeshi grinned widely as he returned to his human form after showing Amarok that he had managed to learn a new form.  
“Indeed I do.”  
Takeshi waited calmly for Amarok to approach and give him his reward, he was quite curious though to see just what kind of kiss he would be getting.  
He had asked for a _proper kiss_ , but Amarok's addition to the bet had only mentioned a kiss, without any specifics, so technically he could get away with just a peck.  
Amarok paused for a moment in front of Takeshi, clearly considering his options for paying the wager, then he leaned in and gave him a proper, deep kiss and didn't object when Takeshi returned it.  
“See, that wasn't so bad, now was it?”  
Takeshi asked with a teasing smile once Amarok broke off the kiss.  
“I never believed it would be. But I trust you were able to sense the truth now?”  
“Yes. I know there is nothing there. I know you are a mated male. I have known for a while now.”  
“How?”  
“The way your energy blends with Ash's and the fact that I can sense your energy in some of her offspring.”  
“And this doesn't bother you?”  
Amarok seemed surprised, Ash was the old alpha female of the pack, the ashen gray fur giving her her spoken name, when communicating mind to mind no names were needed.  
“Why would it, you are both blessed aren't you? And when you are in the form of the wolf, you **are** a wolf.”  
The deep sigh of relief that followed made Takeshi laugh.  
“You thought I would disapprove because she is not a shifter? Because her only shape is that of the wolf?”  
There was a hint of disappointment in Takeshi's voice, with everything he had spoken to Amarok about the old shapeshifter should have figured out it wouldn't bother him.  
“I'm sorry...”  
“No need for apologies, but really. Is this any different than a human being with a youkai? Have you forgotten that my first lover was a fox?”  
“I...”  
Amarok went silent before nodding slowly.  
“I guess I should have caught that.”  


Takeshi had managed to take the form of the moose and caribou as well, though they felt wrong somehow, taking the form of prey animals made him feel uncomfortable.  
Also it seemed the Mother was somehow preventing him from assuming any bird forms, whenever he tried he could feel her chiming voice within telling him he should learn to run and swim before trying to fly.  
He could see the wisdom in that, assuming the form of a bird was probably easy while learning to fly was probably a lot harder, not to mention hazardous.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


As the 1 year anniversary of the death of his unit approached Takeshi became increasingly withdrawn as the grief began to weigh on him again, and before long he had isolated himself completely.  
He didn't even appear to join Amarok for meals, instead he would sneak out and get food when Amarok was out, or sleeping.  
“Come here pup. Enough hiding away in there.”  
Amarok called from the entrance to the cavern that Takeshi had claimed as his own.  
“Just leave me alone.”  
Amarok sighed when Takeshi just turned around in his bed.  
“No pup. You need companionship, not solitude.”  
When Takeshi refused to answer Amarok entered the room and sat down at the edge of the bedding.  
“Either you come join us, or I will come join you.”  
When Takeshi didn't respond he laid down and rolled in a bit, enough to allow him to touch Takeshi back without crowding him.  
“Have it your way.”  
He could feel Takeshi sigh, but there was no sign of rejection, instead he could feel the younger man relax slightly.  
“Pup, I know it hurts. But isolating yourself won't make it better. Come join the pack instead, talk, remember.”  
It took a while before Takeshi responded.  
“Please, I can't, not now...”  
“Fine, don't talk, but please, don't isolate yourself. You are a pack creature, you do not do well with solitude.”  
There was a long moment of silence, then Takeshi suddenly turned around and burrowed his face in Amarok's chest and broke down with a keening cry.  
“That's it pup. Voice your pain, it's the only way to conquer it.”  
Amarok silently held Takeshi as he wailed and cried, cursed and lamented, patiently waiting for him to finally work through his grief, and more importantly, his feelings of guilt.  


“How are you feeling?”  
Takeshi had finally calmed down, but he was still clinging to Amarok with his face buried in his chest.  
“Better.”  
“Well enough to come join me in the kitchen to eat?”  
“I don't want to let go.”  
Takeshi's answer held a hint of an almost childish defiance that made Amarok smile, it was a good sign that he was on the right path.  
“You're hungry, aren't you?”  
“Yeah. Can't you just bring me dinner in bed?”  
Now he was mock whining and Amarok's smile turned into an amused snort.  
“If you come eat in the kitchen I promise you can use me as a snuggle toy afterward. Okay?”  
The instant pleased shift in Takeshi's aura told Amarok that he would agree before he answered.  
“Fine...”  


After their meal they returned to Takeshi's room and settled down among the furs of Takeshi's bedding, though Takeshi never collected the promise to be allowed to use Amarok as a snuggle toy.  
Instead they talked through the night, Takeshi asking Amarok to tell him about those first 9 days before he woke up.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


Takeshi sat crouched down on a small ledge high on the cliff-side, watching, listening, feeling, not far below his target, a large nest, rested securely on a ledge, protected by outcroppings and low bushes that rooted deep into the crevices of the cliff.  
He had spent over two months on his small ledge, watching a pair of eagles nest below.  
He had watched them repair the nest, lay their eggs and he had watched as all three eggs had hatched and the parents had began the constant effort to feed their young.  


A quiet yip from above told him that his _take-out_ had arrived, his lookout spot gave a great view of the nesting eagles, but made it hard to get food and water, if he climbed out to restock it would disturb the nesting eagles below which could put risk to the eaglets so instead one of the wolves would come by and drop down a packet of food and water every now and then.  
Luckily his new body didn't need much water as long as he ate enough fresh, raw meat, the packs also contained Amarok's version of a trail bar, nuts, grains, dried fruits and herbs mixed with rendered bear fat.  
Amarok had tried to talk him out of his current project, nearly begged him to wait longer before trying such a dangerous task, but Takeshi had been adamant, he no longer felt any resistance from the Mother when he tried to take the form of a bird, he hadn't succeeded yet though. _  
_

He was convinced that he would be able to if he just learned more about his intended form, so when he had spotted a pair of eagles beginning to repair an old nest he decided to study them.  
It had taken days to find a suitable spot that gave a good view of the nest without disturbing the birds and once he found one he had prepared a nest of his own and began to spend more and more time there to allow the eagles to get used to him being there and now that the eggs had hatched he hadn't moved at all and he would stay until the eaglets left the nest. _ **  
**_ He watched as the eaglets grew, and he watched as the weakest of the three succumbed to the competition for food, as much was to be expected, rarely does more than one eaglet survive. Two weeks later the smaller of the survivors was killed and eaten by its sibling, leaving just the strongest one to grow rapidly when there was no competition for the food.  
When the eaglet finally left the nest and began to hunt on its own Takeshi returned to the den and asked Amarok to join him as he tried to become an eagle.  
He didn't want to risk being alone in case he crashed and hurt himself when trying to fly.  


“Amazing!”  
Amarok stared at the large golden eagle that sat on the rock in front of him in awe before walking up and gently brushing his fingers over the spiky, gold speckled, feathers that crowned Takeshi's head.  
“Magnificent...”  
Amarok offered his arm to Takeshi who carefully hopped over, but a slight loss of balance made him dig his talons in deeply into the unprotected arm.  
_“I'm sorry, I should have thought to have you protect your arm.”_  
“Don't worry pup, I will heal fast. Now go, test those wings. I will be here if you need me.”  
Amarok raised his arm and tossed Takeshi into the air to allow him to get more air under his wings, the first flight only lasted a handful of seconds though before he made a rather clumsy landing.  
“Are you okay?”  
Amarok hurried over and picked Takeshi up, mindful of his talons this time.  
_“Yeah, I'm fine. But you aren't.”  
_ Takeshi quickly returned to his human form and helped Amarok clean and wrap the gouges caused by the sharp talons.  
“These supplies were supposed to be for me...”  
“Don't blame yourself, we were both equally eager to see you fly, and neither of us were considering that you might lose your balance.”  
“Balance is tricky as an eagle. I think I'm overcompensating.”  
“Understandable. How about you just try to keep your balance on my arm while I move it up and down?”  
“Put something on to protect it first.”  
There was still a hint of remorse in the tone so Amarok took out one of his old sleeping furs and cut a pair of wide strips and some cords from it and wrapped them around his arms for protection.  
“This should do it.”  
Takeshi nodded and shifted back to the eagle form and quickly jumped over to the offered arm and for the next few hours Amarok walked around with him, raising and lowering his arms, turning and tilting to allow Takeshi to get a feel for his new balance.  


“Ready for another try?”  
Takeshi's soft call was answer enough and Amarok tossed him into the air again.  
This time he managed to fly a small lap around the clearing before landing on the rock, the landing was still pretty rough though.  
“That looked a lot better. How did it feel?”  
_“It felt pretty good. But something was missing. I think I need to go higher, catch the rising winds.”_  
“Be careful, okay?”  
_“I will.”_  
Amarok picked him up again and tossed him into the air and this time he flapped his wings hard a few times to pick up altitude.  
Then suddenly he spread his wings wide and let out a triumphant call as he caught a rising wind and began to soar up along the mountainside.  
When he returned down he shifted just before landing in front of Amarok, grabbed his face, and kissed him breathless.  
“That. Was. Amazing!”  
Stepping back he tilted his head and looked at Amarok for a moment before realizing what he had just done.  
“Oh, sorry. Didn't mean to do that without your permission.”  
“It's okay. After all, it's not every day you learn how to fly. Just don't make a habit out of it.”  
“I'll try not to. But damn, what a rush!”  
Amarok shook his head at Takeshi's over energetic ramblings before taking his hand and placing it over his own heart to let Takeshi feel the racing pulse, and the moment he did he leaned in and placed his ear against Amarok's chest, over the heart, listening to it as it gradually slowed down to a more normal pulse.  
“You were beautiful.”  
Amarok spoke into Takeshi's hair while he patiently waited for him to calm down from the rush of his first true flight.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Becoming_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


As fall came around Takeshi became restless, he gathered as much of nature's bounty as he could, but once snow blanketed the wilds he asked Amarok to join him in the hotspring.  
“What can I do for you pup?”  
“There is still a few things left for me to learn about the blessing, but I can only do so much in the dead of winter.”  
“Indeed, you learn remarkably fast. So what are your plans?”  
Amarok was no fool, he figured that Takeshi had asked him to be there because he had made up his mind.  
“It's time I start working on honoring my oath and work on making-plans. I need information, I need to know the movements of the GCTI and I need a safe way to contact Kasumi when the time is right.”  
Amarok nodded silently for a moment before speaking up,  
“You want access to my network of informants and spies.”  
It was not a question, merely a statement of fact.  
“Yes and no. Not just access, I will become the _Wolf_. I will accompany you to your meetings in my wolf form and learn the trade, you will arrange a meeting with the GCTI under the guise of demanding compensation for destroying part of your _base_. You will demand that they send Thomas Matthews, tell them you will speak to no one else.”  
It was obvious by the tone of Takeshi's voice that he expected to be obeyed and for a moment it made Amarok want to refuse but just as he was about to voice his refusal Takeshi spoke up again,  
_“You will do this!”_  
Takeshi's voice carried a strange vibrating overtone and Amarok could feel how his own will gave way to Takeshi's and there was no choice but obedience.  


“I do apologize for forcing my will over yours, but I know it would take years to get you to agree if I didn't. But the GCTI are after you, you need to retire, the information that the Wolf has fallen and been replaced needs to start spreading through the network. But before that I need to learn.”  
Amarok sighed as Takeshi was right, he would have fought it for a long time before agreeing to let Takeshi take his place as the Wolf.

 


	5. Reunion

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Reunion_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)  


Fairbanks, Alaska, March 3rd 2027  


“So this is the famous _Wolf_ is it?”  
A cocky voice called out in a thick southern dialect as a rather fat man in a poorly fitting GCTI uniform approached the table where Amarok sat, once he was a few steps away he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks as an enormous black wolf stepped out from behind the sofa and growled low at him.  
“I suggest you don't step any closer if you wish to keep all your parts attached.”  
Amarok told him coldly before turning towards Takeshi's wolf form.  
“Yakone, check him!”  
Takeshi shook his head internally as he stepped up to the GCTI man and started sniffing around for any weapons, marking with a growl when he found one.  
“The weapons, drop them, and don't think for a second you can get anything past Yakone, that beast has the best nose there is.”  
Amarok barked sharply and once all the weapons had been put away he told _Yakone_ to come lay down.  
_“Seriously, Yakone? Red Aurora is the best name you can think of?”_  
Takeshi grumbled silently to Amarok.  
_“I was thinking more of another meaning, snow that has been reddened by the spilling of blood, but Red Aurora does fit your eyes well. And I believe it might raise some eyebrows & red flags should I call you Takeshi don't you think?”_  
To that Takeshi huffed his agreement, perhaps the name was more fitting than he had first thought.  
“I am...”  
The GCTI man started but was interrupted by Amarok as well as a growl from Takeshi.  
“I do not care who you are. You are GCTI but not the one I seek, you will return to your masters and tell them to send Thomas Matthews, previous commander of the Liberty. He will travel here in a Blackout, that Blackout will be left here as my payment for the destruction the GCTI attack caused to my territory. If he is not here within one month the _Wolf_ will howl.”  
With that Amarok stood and began to walk away.  
“Yakone, don't eat the messenger...”  
He called out with a smirk as Takeshi flashed a full fanged snarl toward the GCTI man when he walked past.  
They listened to the man's panicked report to his superiors,  
“And tell him to watch out for the damn beast, the _Wolf_ has a real damn wolf with him and I swear that thing is the size of pony!”  


One week later one of Amarok's contacts informed him that Matthews had landed in a Blackout and that he was staying at a local hotel, a courier was promptly sent of with details of a meeting the next evening in a secure location.  
“So, Takeshi, how do you intend to do this?”  
Amarok asked him between bites.  
“We go in the same way as last meeting. Once I confirm that it's Matthews and that he is clean I will reveal myself and explain the situation.”  
The reply was slightly distracted as Takeshi was partially focused on the small computer in front of him, working on the bots he had set up to crawl the global network and collect the information he needed without setting of any alarms, a now familiar tingling radiated from one of the lilies on his chest.  


It turned out that as Takeshi grew stronger the modified scales not only allowed him to communicate with the spirits of his unit, but it had enhanced the power of the scales and he was now able to access Daniels's skill for hacking, he knew everything she had known, and as the hacker _D-Rex_ she was still considered among the best ever.  
“And you are certain he can be trusted?”  
Amarok prodded.  
“No, I'm not, but as you know I have ways to ensure he cannot turn against us.”  
There was dismissal in Takeshi's tone and Amarok sighed to himself.  
_“Oh, Mother, what does this pup have in his future to need a power like this?”  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Reunion_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯) _  
_

Matthews was confused and he did not like that.  
One week ago General Harris had summoned him to the Liberty for a classified briefing.  
He had been ordered to take a Blackout and fly to Fairbanks, Alaska to meet with the information broker _Wolf_ , this was usually handled by one of Barrow's lackeys but apparently _Wolf_ had asked for him by name and demanded that he was the one to handle the _negotiations_.  
He looked at the short briefing that really didn't tell him much, only three short points and a note.  


1: The _Wolf_ has demanded a Blackout as payment for “property damage”.  
2: The _Wolf_ has demanded that Commander Matthews handle the contact.  
3: The _Wolf_ will spread an unknown amount of information if demands are not met, information assumed to be of a negative nature for the GCTI.  
Note: Beware of abnormally large and aggressive pet wolf apparently trained in detecting weapons and probably used for personal defense.  


On top of everything the Blackout he had been assigned was Takeshi's Blackout, they had never been able to get all of Daniels's hacking out of the systems so now they choose to dump it and cut their losses, it felt wrong to Matthews, that plane was Takeshi's.  
The unit was listed as MIA and every shred of information was classified and Matthews had not been able to get into the files, but somehow he had a feeling that Takeshi wasn't dead.  


Now he found himself sitting in a small but obviously expensive pub waiting for his meeting with the _Wolf_.  
After about an hour of waiting a server approached him and told him that _Amarok_ would see him now.  
Matthews followed the server to a small ornate door leading into a VIP reception area and was showed to a large desk with an armed guard on each side and a tiny receptionist, she was no more than 150 cm and very slender but her voice was all ice and cold steel when she spoke.  
“Leave all your weapons, electronics, communications and recording equipment here!”  
She pointed toward a metal box.  
Matthews did as he was told and then hesitated for a moment before reaching behind his ear and removing the transmitter and power-pin from his com-implant and placing those in the box as well.  
“Smart move. Get him out of here!”  
She nodded to the guards who quickly led him to an elevator door and ordered him inside and once the door closed the elevator began to move down.  


There was no sign of any controls so Matthews figured there was a security room somewhere that monitored and controlled it.  
When the elevator stopped and the doors opened he was once again faced with a pair of guards, these were however unarmed which caused Matthews to raise a questioning eyebrow.  
“No weapons allowed in the VIP area, that includes the guards, so don't think you can steal one and cause trouble.”  
One of the guards sneered at him.  
Matthew raised his hands slowly in a placating motion.  
“No trouble intended.”  
“Smart, now come here!”  
The guard motioned for him to move in front of the pair and showed him to a door and pushed a button on a com-panel.  
“You guest has arrived Sir.”  
There was a moment's silence before a small click was heard and the door opened.  
The guards quickly ushered him in and slammed the door behind him with a nervous glance into the room.  
A low growl behind him made Matthews turn around and the reason for the guards fear was instantly obvious as the source of the sound revealed itself to be a huge black wolf.  


“Step forward and allow _Yakone_ to check you for weapons.”  
A voice called from a shaded corner of the small private room.  
Matthews did as instructed and the wolf began to sniff around and much to his surprise he could feel that it checked the com implant as well, it was frighteningly well trained.  
“I am Amarok, the one you call the _Wolf_. Please Mr Matthews, have a seat.”  
The man, Amarok pointed to a comfortable looking armchair as he spoke.  
Matthews took a quick glance toward the wolf but the beast seemed to ignore him at the moment so he slowly took a seat.  
“Please, call me Thomas, or Commander Matthews. I must say, I am confused as to why you have requested me for this meeting, I don't work with intel.”  
He asked as he sat down.  
“Quite understandable, however I am not the one that asked you to be here.”  
Amarok answered him.  
“If not you, then who?”  
Matthews asked as he looked around trying to see if there was anyone else in the room but could only see the two of them and the wolf.  
“A mutual friend I think I dare say.”  
Amarok paused for a moment before looking at the wolf.  
“Your turn _Yakone_.”  


Matthews eyes widened as the wolf stepped forward and began to _change_ , moments later a eerily familiar young man stood before him in a sharp black suit and the hilt of a sword peeking up over the shoulder.  
“T, Takeshi?”  
Matthews shook his head in disbelief  
“Is that really you?”  
“How many others do you know with the habit of carrying a katana?”  
The man in front of him replied with a cocky grin.  
“Takeshi Kiryu! You sneaky little bastard, where have you been!”  
Matthews couldn't resist giving him a crushing hug.  
“They have you and your unit flagged as MIA and quite frankly I was starting to get worried. What have you guys been up to? And where are the others hiding?”  
Matthews voice trailed of as he could feel the atmosphere of the room shift and a cold rage emanate from Takeshi.  
There was no doubt in Matthews's mind what would cause that reaction, the others were dead.  
“Oh no, Take. What happened?”  
He asked as he sat down heavily.  
“The GCTI is what happened! We were sent to find the _Wolf_ , once we reached the entrance to the caves a missile strike hit us, Shani died instantly, Luis and D moments later. Maria lasted long enough to beg me to find her daughter.”  
Takeshi's voice shook with the effort to maintain control but as he pulled his clothes to aside to show the addition to his tattoo it slipped and claws, fangs and eyes manifested themselves and a slight growl echoed in his voice as he spoke .  
“I swore an oath that I will avenge them, I swore on my **Name** , my **Blood** and my **Blade**! There is no going back, the GCTI **will** fall and anyone with a hand in their death will die!”  
Takeshi's voice faded as he took deep breaths to regain control, but a low growl could still be heard.  


Mathews sighed deeply.  
“Of course you did. Wouldn't be you if you didn't. Please tell me you were at least able to give them a proper burial?”  
Matthews asked solemnly.  
“Yes, they have been buried with honor and respect in a place where they will never be desecrated.”  
The cold fury was slowly fading from Takeshi's voice but Matthews could still feel it in the room.  
“For now, please. Can we just move on to why I asked you here?”  
“Of course, but before that, mind explaining the wolf thing? And the claws and fangs? Not to mention those seriously freaky eyes?”  
Matthews noticed that Takeshi looked at the other man, Amarok, the _Wolf,_ for a moment before he nodded and began explaining what was going on and if he hadn't seen a wolf turn into a man he would have assumed that Takeshi had lost his mind along with his unit.  
But a part of him wasn't so sure he hadn't, if there was one thing he had always liked about the boy it was his loyalty, there was nothing he wouldn't do for those he considered friends, or otherwise worthy.  


After a few hours of talking about Takeshi's plans a server came in with a cart holding several trays of food but Matthews found himself unable to eat as he watched Takeshi swiftly consume a large plate piled high with raw meat before he seemed to realize there where others in the room.  
“Ah, sorry about that Commander. I have gotten used to only having Amarok around and he does not mind my occasional cravings.”  
Takeshi told him while licking the blood from clawed fingers and flashing him a fanged smile before getting back to the plans in the making.  
It was long into the morning before they were done and Matthews was escorted from the VIP rooms by a pair of guards.  


“How about we go have a look at the Blackout? Matthews mentioned that is was the same one I used to use.”  
Takeshi looked towards Amarok who simply nodded as he got up and by the time the door opened he was once again flanked by the wolf he had dubbed _Yakone_.  
Much to Takeshi's delight all of Daniels's modifications were intact, it appeared that GCTI techs didn't know how to get it out of there without risking ruining the aircraft.  
At the same time they were clearly curious about them so they hadn't wanted to just rip it all out and repair the Blackout for service.  
With a few mental commands he instructed Amarok how to initiate the security scans to make sure there were no eyes or ears added before shifting back to a form better suited for typing.  
Once again he could feel Daniels's mark tingle as he tapped into her gift to thoroughly check all systems and add a few more security protocols before moving it to a small hangar that Amarok rented.  
When it was securely stored they headed back toward the den to train, to make preparations, to wait for the right time to put his plan into action.  


Matthews returned to his Miami office but found himself to be distracted, he knew GCTI didn't always play by the rules, he knew about the blackmail against Takeshi, threatening his family, he knew that they had faked his information in order to recruit the at the time 15 year old boy and put him through hell.  
He knew about their deals with various shady organizations, how they would allow some pretty nasty people to keep doing their thing just to secure more funds, more power.  
But to set up such a trap and send a missile strike against one of their own teams just for being good at what they did was just too much.  
Matthews truly hoped that Takeshi would be able to become the one to take GCTI down once and for all, he didn't even care that many would surely die in the progress.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Reunion_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯) _  
_

“Come on pup, you can move faster than that!”  
Amarok taunted Takeshi while sidestepping the swiping claws and lashing out with a powerful paw, knocking him roughly into the cave wall.  
“I have power, you have speed, but you need to tap into that speed, even when using the bear half-form the Blessing still makes me faster than most humans.”  
Amarok chastised softly as Takeshi's transformation bled away and left a human male leaning heavily against the wall, still dazed from the powerful hit.  
“You need to use your power.”  
He continued while watching Takeshi slide down to the floor, leaning his back against the wall while allowing himself to heal from what no doubt was a  mild to moderate concussion.  
“If I draw any more power **It** will get loose.”  
“I know pup. But you need to learn to control it if you are ever to reach your full potential.”  
Takeshi sighed deeply as he got up from the stone floor.  
“I know, but that cursed thing is dangerous!”  
“So are you pup.”  
Takeshi paused for a moment before sighing again.  
“I guess. We will work more on it when we get back from New York.”  


Matthews had sent them some intel that there was a meeting going down outside New York, the location was remote, but open, making it hard to approach or spy on so Takeshi would go there and use his new ability to check it out.  


As expected not much attention was paid to the local crows and Takeshi borrowed their form to approach the house unnoticed.  
While they held their meeting he sat on a ledge outside one of the windows with a air intake above it, it was enough to allow him to listen in to what was being said while no one seemed to notice the crow preening its feathers.  
At the end of the meeting one of the participants did notice him though.  
“You know, crows are quite remarkable creatures. Did you know they are easy to train?”  
The words made Takeshi wary, prepared to flee if they decided to try to harm him.  
“Bring that electronics scanner here.”  
The man took a few scraps from the snacks that had been served and opened a window further down the room and offered the to Takeshi.  
Takeshi carefully approached, acting the role of the cautious crow.  
City crows were know to be fearless, but not stupid, and they were not inside the city, so it would be reasonable for him to be somewhat less fearless.  
The man seemed to be thinking the same thing as he stepped back slightly and took the scanner and aimed it in Takeshi's direction.  
The windows were treated with a special film to prevent readings from being taken through them.  
Takeshi carefully hopped closer and allowed the man to scan him while he ate his fill from the offered treats.  
The sigh of relief when the scan come back negative had Takeshi slightly curious, something about the man gave him a good feeling.  
“It's clean.”  
After handing the scanner to one of the others he turned back to Takeshi.  
“Lucky for you little fellow, or we would have had to catch you or even kill you to try to figure out who trained you.”  
It would seem the man was an animal friend, but Takeshi didn't think that was the reason for the positive vibe he got so he made a mental note to look deeper into his involvement with the GCTI, he already knew that not everyone who worked with them were bad people, some just tried to make the best out of a bad thing.  
“Hey! Ricky! Why don't you just kill the damned pest and be done with it!”  
One of the other med approached the window with his gun drawn and Takeshi got ready to flee but the other man, Ricky blocked the aggressor.  
“Because I happen to like crows helluva lot more than I like any of you, or humans in general.”  
Takeshi took the raised voices as a queue to leave, pretending to be spooked by the sudden aggressiveness in the air.  
“Now look what you did! You scared him away.”  
“You're fucking mental...”  
Takeshi laughed to himself as the argument continued for as long as he could hear them.  


“How did it go pup?”  
“As expected. Confirmed a lot of suspicions, but of course no actual proof.”  
“Don't worry pup, we will get what we need.”  
“One way or another...”  
Takeshi sighed deeply, his little mission had been a success but still it left him unsatisfied.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Reunion_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯) _  
_

“It's good to see you again.”  
Matthews gave Takeshi half a hug and ruffled his fur before following him and Amarok to their usual meeting place.  
“I'll never get used to seeing that...”  
Matthews mumbled in awe as Takeshi shifted back to his human form.  
“You better get that chin of the floor if you want any food.”  
Takeshi teased as he moved into the small kitchen next to the room where they were meeting.  
Last time Matthews had expressed his curiosity about the native cuisine so they had brought a wide selection for him to try.  
“Oh, that looks interesting!”  


They spent hours talking and eating before bringing up the reason for Matthews' visit.  
“I have come across some documents indicating that the GCTI are getting ready to write you off. They no longer believe there is any chance that you might be alive.”  
“That's good news. I should be able to move a bit more freely if they stop looking for me.”  
“You'll still have to watch out for the automated facial recognition systems.”  
“I think I can deal with that.”  
Focusing on his shift Takeshi altered some of his facial features, enough to make the software used for facial recognition unable to determine it was him.  
“Instant plastic surgery, neat. And kinda creepy, It still looks like you somehow even if it doesn't... How is that even possible?”  
“Well, it's actually mostly your mind playing tricks. You saw me change so you know it's me. Also my aura and my eyes are the same. So knowing this face is actually me your mind is making the associations it needs, connecting this new face to your memories and knowledge of me.”  
“Making me feel like I recognize you even if I wouldn't if I hadn't seen you change?”  
“Exactly.”  


Matthews' information indicated that a formal declaration would most likely be made around the time of the 5 year anniversary of the attack, giving them six months to prepare.  
Takeshi had a few things he wanted to have made for Kasumi before inviting her to the den.  


 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Reunion_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯) _  
_

Kasumi Kiryu Estate, Miami. February 2030  


A group of guards approached the poolside porch escorting a pair of GCTI officers in formal uniform.  
“Ojousama!”  
The guards bowed sharply to the woman resting on a pool chair and waited to be acknowledged before introducing the visitors.  
“Ojousama, these GCTI officers are here to deliver a personal message.”  
Another nod and the guards allowed the men to step forward.  
“Are you miss Kasumi Kiryu?”  
The older of the two men spoke up.  
“I am. Now why are GCTI scum sullying my afternoon?”  
She snapped at him with distaste clear in her tone.  
The man seemed confused for a moment before gathering himself and with a nervous glance at the armed guards he stated his business.  
“Miss, I am sorry to inform you that your brother, Takeshi Kiryu, has been confirmed killed during a mission in Alaska. And it is with my deepest condolences I must also inform you that we have not been able to bring his body home.”  
He expected her to react strongly, even violently, the Kiryu heir was well known for her explosive temper.  
He did not expect her to merely close her eyes and take a deep breath and then sigh with relief.  


When she heard the message Kasumi quickly reached within and desperately searched for the bond with Takeshi, he had been so far away for so long the bond was barely detectable and although she had not felt it break there was a risk that its weakened state had caused her to not feel it.  
She found the faint bond still intact and gave it a hard tug and when she felt a small answering tug she breathed out a sigh of relief.  
She struggled to contain her amusement at the fact that they still called Takeshi her brother, even their own documents showed that he wasn't, but it seemed everyone who saw them together assumed them to be siblings.   
“You have delivered your message, now **Get Out!** ”  
The guards instantly began to usher the men towards the main gate and Kasumi could hear them talking as they walked away.  
“Odd, she seemed relieved to find out her brother is dead.”  
The younger one turned to his companion.  
“Sergeant Kiryu has been listed as missing for five years, I believe it would be a relief to finally know for sure.”  
“I guess you're right, with her reputation I kinda expected a different reaction.”  
The rest of the conversation faded away as the guards escorted them around the corner of the house towards the main gate and Kasumi could not help wonder what they were up to.  
Takeshi was obviously not dead, not only was the bond still there, but for the first time in five years she had felt a clear response when she tugged on it.

She quickly grabbed Arashi and Kuragari as well as the simple obi from under the chair and headed to her study.  
With some luck this meant that the GCTI truly believed Takeshi to be dead and if they did that meant he was in the clear and would probably contact her soon so she needed to make preparations.  
She wanted to be able to move fast if he contacted her. 

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Reunion_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯) _  
_

Meanwhile in Brooks Range Alaska  


Takeshi narrowly avoided getting sliced by Amarok's claws when he felt the tug in his soul, the bond with Kasumi carried a faint sensation of worry, but no pain or fear so he guessed that the GCTI had delivered the _news_ of his demise, it was finally time to get things moving.  
“Isso, is everything okay? You seem distracted.”  
Amarok had shifted out of his bear-form when he noticed that Takeshi wasn't paying attention to their sparring.  
“Yes, I'm fine. It's just Kasumi pulling at my leash a bit. It seems Matthews' information was spot on as usual. It's time to prepare for having a guest.”  
Takeshi answered distractedly, there was so much to do now.  
“Yes Isso. I will prepare one of the annex chambers, do you think she would prefer the larger one next to the whelping room, or the smaller one by the springs? Never mind, I will prepare both and she can pick herself.”  
Takeshi smiled to himself as he listened to Amarok worry like an old lady.

He had been living with the pack for five years and it had taken three before Amarok had stopped calling him “pup” and instead began calling him _Isso_ , it was short for _Issorartuyok_ which was quite a mouthful and translated roughly to _pack leader_ , Alpha.  
In the end what changed it was Takeshi losing control of the Beast during training and nearly beat Amarok to death before regaining control, something in Amarok's spirit had broken with that defeat and ever since he would defer to, and act submissive to, Takeshi and he began to address him as _Isso_ instead of _pup_ .  
Takeshi was relieved though that Amarok was slowly recovering from the incident, there was no longer any hint of fear while they sparred.

Takeshi thought back to the events of the past few years as he walked toward the Sanctuary to retrieve the packages he had left there where they were safe from pests.  
The first year was a bit of a blur, it had taken time to recover from the death of his unit, the second year had been consumed by learning about his new powers to take more forms, the third year he had been making plans and the fourth year he had finally been able to gain some control of the beast, it was still locked away but the chain of dragon-magic was no longer needed .  
And now he would finally have a chance to get his plans moving, and to see Kasumi again.

Once inside the annex of the soul-tree he picked up a pile of fur and hide clothing wrapped in a large bearskin.  
After securing the package on his back he picked up the the crystal container holding a wisteria bonsai made from the soul-tree, using the blessing he had been able to shape the wines into a tree with its roots sprawling over a crystal cluster and around the base of the cluster was a ring of tiny camellia bushes sporting yellow and white flowers.  
It was the Mother that had suggested he use the art of bonsai to practice control of his new abilities, he was gifted with a few mature pods from the soul-tree, normally the tree was frozen in a permanent state of bloom, never wilting so these pods had intentionally been made to mature.  
The seedlings had grown at a remarkable rate and he had soon figured out how to use his power to shape them, coax them into growing the way he wanted them to and to grow into perfect miniatures with thousands of tiny flowers and just like the soul-tree they would remain in a permanent state of bloom, but unlike the natural wisteria both the soul-tree and his bonsai held both leaves and flowers at the same time.  
Once confident in his ability to shape the plants he had asked permission to harvest one of the dark amethyst clusters to create a pot and later camellias and moss were collected and added to create a small garden.  
He had chosen the white and yellow camellias for their symbolism according to _Hanakotoba_ , the traditional Japanese language of flowers where the yellow camellia symbolizes longing and the white ones waiting.  
Much like how the fiery orange lilies above his heart represented revenge.

Once back in the main area of the den Takeshi found Amarok running back and forth with piles of furs and various pieces of wooden furniture.  
“Amarok, I'm heading to Fairbanks to have these sent to Kasumi, I should return within two weeks.”  
Amarok stopped for a moment and when he noticed the things Takeshi was carrying he quickly took the bearskin pack holding the clothes.  
“Understood Isso, I will prepare and pack a sled.“  
Takeshi stopped him before he could run off.  
“Prepare the small sled, I will pull it myself. And I will take Sesi with me, she will be gifted to my sister.”  
“Yes, as you wish Isso.”  
Amarok nodded and walked of to prepare the sled that had been re-designed to allow Takeshi to easily pull it by himself.

Takeshi put the bonsai down and went to the whelping room where a litter of pups were playing with their _babysitters_ , the moment he entered all of them came running to greet and play with their Alpha.  
All but one, staying behind the litter of gray puffs of fur was a single pup with pure white fur, unlike the other pups she was not a Blessed, her mother was a regular wolf that had wandered into the caves severely weakened and when Takeshi found her she was already whelping stillborn pups, only the last one born had been alive, a pure white female pup.  
The moment she had whelped and cleaned her last pup the mother had simply looked at him then laid down her head and died, much to weakened to survive the birth of her litter.  
Takeshi had named the pup _Sesi_ , snow, and brought her to the den and laid her with the newly born pups of the pack and had stayed with them for several weeks to make sure the pup got a chance to feed and grow.  
Now she had grown into a shy little thing with pure white fur tinged with an almost blue tint that made her seem even whiter, and icy-blue eyes.  
After ruffling the pups in greeting he sat down and called the white pup to him and picked her up, when he got up to leave a hesitant growl was heard from the mother of the pups and he quickly reassured her that no harm would come to her adopted pup, that he would bring her to someone who would care for her and that she would return soon.

The next morning Takeshi put the pup into a bundle of warm furs on top of the sled and told her to stay, though not as intelligent as the blessed wolves she was still a clever one and knew to obey her Alpha.  
After shifting he stepped into the harness that had been designed specifically so that he could put it on and take it of on his own while in wolf-form and headed out.  
About an hour later he heard a soft whimpering from the sled and stopped to allow Sesi a short break to eat, drink and relieve herself.  
There would be many short stops to make sure the pup remained comfortable and didn't get bored, he would walk slowly with the sled to allow her to run along and play, but she would tire fast and wanted to go back to the warm comfort of the furs.  
Once he reached Fairbanks he used the contacts he had obtained when he took Amarok's place as the information broker known as _Wolf_ to hire a courier and smuggler working out of Seattle.  
The woman was renowned for her love for animals and her skill in transporting them safely and comfortably.  
Once a meeting was arranged outside of Seattle Takeshi waited for nightfall and flew there in the Blackout, when he landed at the small field he found the courier waiting for him with a large RV bus and after giving instructions for delivering the packages as well as the pup to Kasumi's estate in Miami he handed her the agreed payment as well an an extra bonus to reward the suitable travel method chosen.  
After returning to Fairbanks he hired guides in Fairbanks and Anchorage to keep an eye out for Kasumi and assist her in getting to Fort Yukon.  
Once she reached Fort Yukon she would be picked up by Amarok and brought to the den.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Reunion_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯) _  
_

Kasumi Kiryu Estate, Miami  


One month after the GCTI had delivered the _news_ of Takeshi's demise a woman in a large RV bus pulled up to the main gate and informed the guard that she had an important delivery for Kasumi, she had showed the guard a note with Takeshi's kanji as well as a code word to ensure there was no doubts who sent her.  
She was promptly let in and after a quick security check the guards showed her to Kasumi's study, curiously watching the white pup in her arms.  
“I am Kasumi, I was told you have a delivery for me.”  
The woman in the study told her as she motioned for her to sit down.  
“Yes, I was hired to deliver this pup, a few boxes and a message to Kasumi Kiryu and I was asked to confirm your identity by a code phrase.”  
The woman stated in a polite but sharp tone, she was obviously a professional who had done this many times before.  
“The one who sent you will have given you a _key_ , give it to me.”  
Kasumi extended her hand toward the courier and was promptly handed the note with Takeshi's kanji as well as the kanji for _Arashi_ , storm , it was the name of one of her blades and she quickly wrote down _Kuragari_ and handed to the courier.  
“The counter is Kuragari. Now that we have proven to be who we claim to be would you be so kind as to deliver your cargo?”  
The woman nodded and quietly asked to have four guards assist her in bringing the items inside.

A few minutes later she returned with the guards, each carrying a box.  
The first guard quickly stepped forward with a large, flat box that contained a beautiful caribou parka trimmed with wolf fur and matching pants.  
The second box held a heavy bearskin coat with matching boots and mittens.  
A smaller box held an assortment of jewelry crafted from a variety of bones, fangs, claws and feathers.  
But it was the fourth box that held the true wonder, the large square box opened up to reveal an amazing wisteria bonsai, it's roots crawling over a cluster of dark amethyst crystals, it even had tiny camellias growing around it and when she leaned in closer her breath caused the tiny flowers to ring like bells, every leaf and flower perfectly carved from beautiful crystals.  
But when she carefully touched the trunk she was shocked to feel the life-force flowing through it, this was not a decoration carved from dead crystal, this was a living plant, the small note attached to the pot confirmed that and also held instructions for its care.  
Next she was handed the squirming wolf pup and told that her name was _Sesi_ , snow.  
The final object was a sealed envelope with her name on it, when she opened it revealed a simple note with a set of numbers, latitude and longitude, coordinates to where ever Takeshi was staying she assumed.  
“That was all, If you would please have one of the guards escort me out and I will be on my way”  
The courier stood and gave a short bow.  
Kasumi placed the envelope in a hidden pocket before turning to the courier again  
“You are welcome to stay the night to rest before you leave, you have traveled a long way.”  
With a nod she signaled for the guard to see to that their guest was taken care of.

Later that evening Kasumi arranged a private flight to Fairbanks and set about making arrangement for an extended period away from her estate.  
Instructions were given to her attorney along with the required documents to give her power of attorney to manage the necessary affairs regarding the estate and Kasumi's holdings.  
As expected the elders quickly found out about her plans and demanded she, _Stop that foolishness_ and that even tho it was honorable of her to want to find the body of her Kage it was more important that she find a suitable husband.  
The Elders had been trying to force her to marry for years now in order to secure a male heir for the Kiryu name but Kasumi had refused, always finding some fault with the would be suitors.  
If she managed to stay unwed they would ultimately be forced to either abandon their silly rule of only males being heir and grant her the title or allow for a Kage to be heir and reinstate Takeshi as heir.  
She believed they would allow females to be heir rather than to allow a Kage to be heir since making someone a Kage was a common way to get rid of an unwanted heir.  
Making use of a few of her most trusted guards she disobeyed the orders of the elders and headed to Alaska.

When she landed at the airport in Fairbanks she was met by a local guide who handed her a coded message from Takeshi telling her to allow the guide to take her to Fort Yukon where someone would meet her and bring her to his location.  
She quickly gathered her luggage and followed the guide to a heavy duty SUV, the guide drove her to a small hotel where he arranged for a room and food for her and the wolf pup before informing her that they would leave in the morning.  
The following evening Kasumi found herself in a small but comfortable room in Fort Yukon with a promise that someone would be there within the next couple of days to pick her up.

True to the promise a man knocked at her door two days later and introduced himself as _Amarok_ before handing her one of Takeshi's coded notes once again telling her to follow the person in front of her, she also noticed that the wolf pup seemed to know this person.  
“Hello Sesi. Have you been behaving for your new Alpha?”  
The pup instantly rolled over on her back with a wagging tail and when the man, Amarok, leaned down and rubbed her belly she voiced a few happy sounds.  
It would seem Amarok may have been around Takeshi while he was missing.

Once outside her luggage was quickly stowed onto a dogsled, upon closer inspection she noticed that the gang-lines and harnesses were crafted from kumo-silk, another indication that she was indeed on the right track.  
The sound of an eerily authentic howl from her new guide startled her out of her musings and soon a pack of dogs came running, as they came close it became obvious that they were not dogs, but very large gray wolves and shortly after she was asked to take a seat.  
Once she was comfortably tucked in under the warm furs Amarok stepped up behind her and with a sharp bark the sled began moving, their heading due north.  
She soon found that Amarok did not seem to be much of a conversationalist but he was attentive and polite as he made sure she was comfortable during the trip, as darkness fell they stopped and made camp, her internal clock said that it was still only afternoon but it was too dark to safely navigate the terrain.  
“We will be able to travel after sunset tomorrow, the area here is to treacherous to risk it.”  
Amarok told her as he handed her a steaming bowl containing some kind of meat in a dark broth and a piece of hardtack to soak in the broth.  
The food was surprisingly good despite its simplicity and with the wolves packed tight around her she slept well, safe from the biting cold outside the small hide shelter.

It was late evening when the sled pulled up to the entrance of a cave hidden in the mountainside and Amarok helped her carry her luggage inside and load it onto a small carriage that was pulled by one of the wolves.  
After walking for quite a while through winding tunnels they stopped for a moment and put her bags away into a cave of the side of the tunnel before they moved into a larger cavern where she could sense Takeshi's presence but could not see him.  
“Isso, your guest has arrived.”  
Amarok called into the room and Kasumi noticed movement from a pile of furs as the familiar tattooed back of her Kage, the man she had been raised with, the brother of her heart, appeared and she ran into the room.  
“ **Aniki!** “  
She called out and he turned to her with that blasted smirk of his all over his face.  
“Hisashiburi, Nee-chan.”  
“ **Baka!** ”  
She yelled at him as she reached him and gave him a hard slap before throwing herself around his neck and pulling him into a choking hug.

 


	6. New Paths

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Paths_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“ _ **Baka!**_ _”_  
Takeshi had expected as much for a greeting, but he had somewhat forgotten just how hard Kasumi could hit when she was upset.  
So now he found himself with a stinging cheek and Kasumi wrapped around his neck, not entirely sure if she was hugging him or trying to choke him, but he did savored every second of it.  
“Shush, _nakanaide_. Don't cry.”  
He slowly stroked her back as she broke down into sobs.  
“ _Baka._ I was worried, the bond was getting so weak I could barely feel it, I was afraid it would vanish altogether.”  
She sobbed against his chest and clung to him desperately.  
In response he carefully called on his aura and wrapped it like a cocoon around her, feeding it into the bond to strengthen it.  
“It's okay, it's over now. We are not going anywhere until we are ready.”  
He soothed and she looked up for a moment before stepping back and reaching out to straighten his gi pants that had slipped indecently low on his hips.  
“I thought you were supposed to start looking your age once it caught up to you.”  
“Afraid that won't be happening.”  
He didn't elaborate any further.

Pausing for a moment she moved his braid to the side, revealing the orange lilies over his heart, slowly she covered them with her hand.  
“ _Sayuri_ , four of them. So they are gone then, your dantai.”  
After a moment's pause a single word escaped her as a whisper.  
“ _Fukushuu.”  
_ Steeling herself she looked into Takeshi's eyes as she spoke.  
“Kage, has the oath of vengeance been sworn?”  
Takeshi knew that at this very moment it was not the Kasumi he mostly considered a sister before him but Kasumi, acting Heir to the house of Kiryu.  
“ _ **Kotaeru!**_ ”  
She commanded with a forceful tone, demanding that he answer her.  
“Hai, the oath has been sworn and witnessed. Name, Blood and Blade, sworn before the souls of the departed as they were sent to the afterlife. Kiryu, Ryujin of the shadow-flame stands as my witness, as does the Mother, guardian of The Blessed. Together they gifted me with the _Sayuri_ as proof of my oath.”  
Takeshi straightened as he gave his reply, since he was Kage his oath could be refused, Kasumi could deny him the rights of Name and Blood, leaving nothing but his Blade.  
“So she stands behind you in this, the Ryujin?”  
She asked solemnly.  
“Yes, she swore her full power to my will in this task. As the Mother did the power of the blessing”  
He nodded calmly.  
“The Mother, and this blessing, you will tell me of them before I decide if the house of Kiryu will stand behind your presumptuous oath, Kage.”  
And with that the moment ended, Kasumi was once again just Kasumi, whom he had not seen for over 5 years, and barely seen for another 10 before that.  
“We might as well get that over with. Amarok, could you make sure there is a meal prepared for Kasumi when we get back?”  
He called for Amarok as he signaled for Kasumi to follow him.  
“Yes, of course Isso”  
Amarok's answer came as Takeshi lead Kasumi into the tunnel that lead towards the sanctuary.

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Paths_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“ _Eeto_ , why does he call you Isso?”  
Kasumi wondered as she followed him through the tunnels.  
“Isso is short for Issorartuyok, it would translate as lead dog, pack leader, or in short, alpha. It is his way of showing respect.”  
Takeshi explain before continuing with a laugh,  
“You know, he called me _pup_ for a good three years, it wasn't until I nearly killed him during training that he stopped.”  
That finally brought a true smile to her face as she joined him in laughing.  
It had taken quite a while for Takeshi to be able to think about the incident without wanting to puke, but now he was able to look back at it with a bit of humor, as bad as it had been it had also been the key to gaining a semblance of control over the beast within.

The damage he had done to Amarok in those moments of lost control had been horrific, even the healing ability of the Blessed had not been enough to save him, instead Takeshi had to carry him to the Sanctuary and place him in the pool where She could bolster his power.  
Even then he had been unconscious for a week as he healed, and it had taken months for him to regrow his left eye and regain sight.  
The memory of his claws digging into Amarok's face and tearing the eye almost clean out of the socket had Takeshi suppressing a shudder.  
The damage had been so bad that the Mother had instructed him to cut away the eye, explaining it would be easier for Amarok's body to grow a new eye than it would be to try to repair his old one.

“Where are we going?”  
Kasumi spoke softly as she peeked around him down the dark tunnel, she could clearly sense something was going on.  
“To the sanctuary of the Mother, once there I will explain as well as I can what it all means.”  
Once they reached the hides that marked the entrance to the sanctuary he placed the small torch in the wall mount and gave Kasumi a slight push down the tunnel.  
“Why are we leaving the torch?”  
She asked with her usual curiosity.  
“You will understand once we get inside.”  
She huffed at the lack of a proper answer as he gave her a slight nudge in the back to keep her moving.  
“ _Demo, Nii-san..._ ”  
She complained for a moment before passing the final hide and falling silent.  
Walking down the tunnel she merely nodded silently and when they entered the main cave she reached out and touched the trunk of one of the sakura trees.

“They are just like the bonsai you sent me, all crystal but yet alive and growing.”  
She barely whispered with marvel in her voice.  
“The bonsai was grown from a seed from one of the plants in here, the soul-tree.”  
He told her and as they reached the entrance to the annex Takeshi motioned for Kasumi to wait.  
“Only the Chosen is allowed to enter here without explicit permission.”  
She nodded her understanding and watched as Takeshi kneeled down in front of the trunk of the wisteria that dominated the room, she was slightly surprised to see him draw his blade and place it in front of him with the edge towards him as he bowed his head silently.  
Then she heard the crystal flowers chime as if rustled by a wind, but suddenly she could hear a voice in the chimes.  
_**“Step inside Kasumi, sister in heart to our chosen.”  
**_ Over the bond she could feel Takeshi letting her know it was okay to enter so she stepped in and walked up to him and with a gentle prodding over the bond she kneeled down beside him and introduced herself.  
“I am Kasumi, acting heir to the house of Kiryu, chosen wielder of Arashi and Kuragari. I offer my gratitude to the one who aided my Kage, my brother.”  
_**“You will teach her and you will test her. If she is found worthy she will be given the trial of blood so that she might earn the blessing.”  
**_ While the presence faded from the annex Takeshi turned toward Kasumi.  
“That was the voice of the Mother, in lack of other explanations she is simply Nature, Life and she can bestow the gift of the Blessing.”  
With that he allowed his features slip from the carefully maintained human look into the mixed traits he had adapted after gaining the Blessing.  
After a short moment he continued to shift into the half-form and Kasumi snickered at him as fur replaced clothes and when he finally stood before her in the form of the wolf she smirked.  
“My, my. Now **this** is what I call a decent pet!”  
Takeshi huffed and gave her a good shove with his head causing her to fall over.  
_“Will you please be serious, if you are found worthy you will be given a chance to gain the blessing as well. And trust me, it would be a great benefit if you did.”  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Paths_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Once they had eaten Takeshi showed Kasumi the _rooms_ she could choose between and as Takeshi had suspected she would she picked the smaller one next to the spring.  
“I love it! This spring is amazing! Come on Take, let's take a bath.”  
She eagerly pulled on his arm and he gave in with an amused sigh.  
“Hai hai Sumi-chan. Let me go fetch some supplies first. We only use natural soaps here.”  
“Fine, but you better hurry.”  
He laughed at her impatience as he walked off toward the store room where he picked out a few of the soaps he believed she would like as well as a pile of towels, the tray of essential oils and the raw nut oil they used as conditioner.  
On the way back he grabbed his own bath basket from his room.

“I think one of these should be to your taste.”  
Kasumi quickly started sniffing the soaps with various sighs and moans at the rich scents.  
“Oh this one! I love this one!”  
Takeshi carefully sniffed at the bar she had selected, then her before snickering at her.  
“Sakura and Jasmin, it smells like you you know.”  
He hadn't been able to tell before but now he could.  
“Oh, it does? Cool.”  
“Do you want the same scent for your conditioner?”  
“You should know I don't use conditioners, only a vinegar rinse.”  
“Lye soap is a bit harsh on the hair so you will need to use a good conditioner in addition to a rinse. We mix some nice raw nut oils with herbs and essential oils, it's very effective.”  
Kasumi didn't take his word on it though, instead she undid his braid and ran her fingers through his hair.  
“I guess so. I don't think your hair has ever been this soft before.”  
He ignored her in favor for repeating his question about the scent, it would be good if he could mix it before they started to let it sit for a while.  
“So, same scent?”  
“I don't know.”  
She burrowed her face in his hair and took a deep whiff.  
“I think I'd like something warmer, like your scent.”  
“The raw nut oils we use as a base have a pretty warm and sweet scent on their own, maybe some vanilla and white musk?”  
He quickly selected the bottles mentioned and let her sniff the stoppers along with the jar of the conditioner base.  
“Oh, I like it.”  
Takeshi quickly mixed the ingredients and added a few drops of the oils until the scent was balanced, strong but not overpowering to his sensitive nose.

With the supplies gathered and ready they quickly got undressed and began washing up in preparation for a long soak.  
As always she sat down in front of him, expecting him do wash her back and hair, which he did without complaints, it helped strengthen the bond again.  
“There you go, all done.”  
“Turn around.”  
He did as she asked him without even thinking about it, she had always returned the favor and washed him when he was done with her.  
Though, he could feel in the way that her hands lingered as she washed his back that her intentions for having him join her for a soak wasn't entirely innocent, in fact, they were far from.  
As she touched him in ways he hadn't been touched in in 5 years he couldn't help his reactions, blood rushed down to his groin and his mind drifted to memories of just how satisfying being with her could be.  
When her hand brushed against his shoulder and followed his tattoo down his chest he turned his head and nipped at her fingers as he let his mental shields drop.  
“Oh my...”  
She froze for a moment when she felt what her touch was doing to him, then she leaned against his back and hugged him tightly.  
“You haven't been intimate with anyone since their passing, have you?”  
“I haven't.”  
“I'm sorry.”  
When she continued to wash him the teasing in her touch was gone, and Takeshi found himself missing it, but he kept those feelings tightly under wraps so she wouldn't sense it.

Takeshi held his hand out for Kasumi and supported her as she climbed into the deep pool of the hot spring.  
“This water is perfect.”  
Kasumi rolled her shoulders with a sigh before letting herself sink deeper into the water.  
She didn't stay still for very long though, only minutes later she started moving across the small pool of water and made herself comfortable straddling Takeshi's lap.  
“You feel different over the bond. Please, drop your barriers and let me feel you, let me get used to the new you.”  
With a nod he calmly dropped his barriers one by one, letting her get a feel for his new aura, the power of it.  
“You are a lot stronger now, and you feel more like a youkai than a human. It's feels odd.”  
When she licked her lips and leaned in to kiss him he raised his hand and stopped her.  
“Sumi-chan, don't. I am not not the same young man I was last time you invited me for a tryst. It's not just my power that has changed, I have as well.”  
“And what better way to get to know the new you than to become one with you, even if just for a moment?”  
“If you do this, you will not be in control, I will barely be in control myself, and I won't be able to be gentle.”  
His warning only made her pause for a moment before she leaned in and kissed him and he allowed his control to slip, picking her up and pinning her against the opposite edge before kissing her roughly.  
He could feel her desire spike over the reforming bond as he let his shift slip further and abandoned his human illusion before using his fangs to draw a few drops of blood from her lower lip.  
She yelped when he pulled her out of the water and carried her to the thick furs that covered a heated platform in the corner, but she laughed and pulled him closer once she felt the warm softness beneath her.  
As he touched her, kissed her and brought her closer to the edge he could feel the bond growing stronger, then gradually slip into the total oneness that could only be achieved during physical intimacy between dantai members.

By the time Takeshi reached his end Kasumi was breathing heavily beneath him, exhausted by his unnatural stamina, but she managed to reach up and caress his face with a soft smile.  
“The more things change, the more they stay the same. You are still my beloved Kage, my Takeshi.”  
“You could feel the truth though, couldn't you?”  
Takeshi could feel it when their auras merged, she was not meant for him, their love, their bond, was not that of mates, she didn't evoke the instinctive urge to mate, or breed, that he somehow knew she would have had they been meant to be more.  
“Yeah, but that doesn't mean we can't help each other scratch that certain itch.”  
“Indeed it doesn't.”  
He leaned in and kissed her softly before picking her up and carrying her to the room she had picked and he wasn't the least bit surprised to find that Amarok had prepared it during their bath.  
It was equally unsurprising when Kasumi didn't let go of his hand so he simply joined her among the furs and tucked her against his chest and it didn't take long before both of them were sleeping deeply.

“Good morning Sleepyhead.”  
Takeshi greeted Kasumi with a teasing tone when she finally began to stir, it would seem her morning habits had changed in the past few years.  
“Who said you were allowed to be this chipper in the morning?”  
“Now now Sumi-chan, it's almost 8, have you grown lazy while I was away?”  
“Take, it's pitch black...”  
“We are underground, remember?”  
She groaned and grumbled, but she did start moving and soon her hand slipped from his chest and down his belly.  
“Tell me Kage, are you still able to be soft and gentle, or has the wild beast taken you over completely?”  
“Oh I am, most of the time. And I will always try to warn you when I'm not.”  
His new instincts did rebel against her taking a dominant position though so he gently moved her hand and rolled them over, pinning her beneath him.  
“I'm afraid I won't be able to allow you control though, not for now at least.”  
“I think I can live with that.”  
The previous night had been about releasing 5 years of pent up sexual frustrations, and letting Kasumi feel the truth of how he had changed, now it was about showing her he was still himself.

 

“I do believe you have gotten bigger...”  
Kasumi grumbled with a slightly pained expression as they both settled into the soothing heat of the spring.  
“Quite possibly. Last time we were together I was an overgrown boy, now I'm a fully mature male.”  
“I'm not gonna be able to walk, or sit, straight...”  
“You weren't complaining earlier.”  
“Oh shush..! This all your fault!”  
Takeshi just laughed, and offered to carry her around all day which earned him a hard punch on the arm. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Paths_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Having Kasumi around made life in the den rather, _interesting_.  
While having her close meant there was no longer an aching hole in his soul due to the weakened bond and that there was the possibility that some occasional sexual relief would be available, it also meant he was exposed to her whimsical moods again, for a woman her age she could be positively infantile in her antics.

“Thank you Sesi.”  
Takeshi sighed as he watched the white wolf give his pants to Kasumi.  
For a brief moment he reached for another pair, but then he thought better of it and walked out into the main room of the den wearing nothing but the leather tie that kept his braid in place.  
“Isso, Sumi, could you two please keep your antics contained to your rooms?”  
“I'm not the one who decided to walk around stark naked.”  
Kasumi pouted when Amarok scolded them both, but there was a pleased tone to her voice that made it quite clear that getting Takeshi to walk around naked had been her goal.  
“No, but you did train Sesi to steal his clothes.”  
“A lady needs to keep herself entertained.”  
The playful answer just made Amarok sigh and shake his head while mumbling in his native language.  
“Sumi-chan, if you are that bored how about we step up your lessons?”  
“Do we have to?”  
The mock pout had Takeshi chuckling, it was quite obvious that the prospect of more lessons had her excited, the bond was vibrating with anticipation.  
“Would you rather stay in the den all summer while we head out and resupply?”  
“Don't you dare leave me here!”  
“Then come on, let's go teach a few more things to get you ready.”  
“Oh, what's the lesson?”  
“Preparing salmon for smoking and drying.”  
Her eager energy instantly vanished, she had never been a fan of cleaning fish.

The fact that Kasumi didn't complain or try to get out of their little field trip was a good indicator to just how bored she was.  
“How are we supposed to catch fish to practice on without nets or rods? Are you planning on testing me on my bushcraft skills?”  
“Eventually, but this time I will catch a few fish for us to work with.”  
Pulling on the power within he cast aside his human form in favor of that of the golden eagle and Kasumi's reaction had him laughing to himself.  
“That's cheating!”  
Takeshi waited patiently on one of the large rocks at the edge of the small river while Kasumi studied him.  
“You are larger than a normal eagle, aren't you?”  
_“I am. Taking a smaller form is hard, compressing your body is easy, but doing the same with your energy is harder.”_  
“You're beautiful...”  
Takeshi preened a puffed his feathers as she reached out to scratch his head, it was hard to suppress the foreign instincts so he didn't bother with the small things instead he focused on letting her examine him before he took to the air and started looking for suitable fish.

“Eew, I hate fish guts...”  
Kasumi complained loudly as she removed the guts and placed them in the tightly woven basket before rinsing the emptied out cavity  
“Could have fooled me with the way you gobble down _Shiokara_ , especially _Shuto_ whenever you have some saké.”  
“That's prepared, not straight out of the fish!”  
Takeshi just laughed at her complaints and continued to instruct her in the best way to cut up the fish for smoking and drying.

“What are you going to do with the guts?”  
“Shiokara, of course.”  
She instantly lit up with a bright smile at the promise of the salty, fermented, snack that went so well with saké.  
“Do you have some nice saké to go with it?”  
“Of course. I have even made some myself.”  
“Oh, now I'm curious.”  
“It's actually pretty decent. But I do have a nice stash of the really good stuff as well.”  
“Good, I have been missing a decent drink.”

Once the shiokara was done fermenting Takeshi brought out a selection of saké, as well as Amarok's version of moonshine, and the potent wolf's bane mash.  
“What is that?”  
Kasumi reached out to grab Takeshi's glass and fell back with a startled yelp when she was met with a furious snarl and a clawed hand grabbing hers.  
“Take..?”  
“Don't touch it. It's wolf's bane.”  
Amarok spoke up while Takeshi was crouched between Kasumi and the low table with his and Amarok's drinks, struggling to regain control.  
“But that's poisonous...”  
“Yes it is. Remember what we explained about the blessing making us extremely resistant against toxins?”  
“Yeah..?”  
“Well ethanol is psychoactive toxin.”  
“Oh, but still, why wolf's bane?”  
“We can't counteract wolf's bane the same way we can other substances, so by ingesting wolf's bane together with alcohol we can get drunk without needing to actively focus on not counteracting the alcohol.”  
“Ah, that makes sense. And it explains why my dear Kage reacted so strongly.”  
“I'm sorry if I scared you, my protective instincts took over a bit. The mix in my glass is very strong because I am strong so it takes a lot of the toxin to suppress my ability.”  
Takeshi joined the conversation once he was calm enough to speak and the fact that Kasumi understood the danger of his and Amarok's drinks helped calm him down further.  
“I must say, for a human your size you sure can hold your drinks.”  
Amarok was somewhat surprised at the amounts Kasumi was drinking.  
“Oh, I have plenty of training. Also, I may not be as skilled, or have as much power as my dear Kage here, but I am able to manipulate my reiki to prevent myself from getting too drunk, or end up hungover.”

Takeshi was comfortably buzzed when he allowed Kasumi to drag him to her room and use him as a bed warmer and pillow, talking about old times, and by the time she fell asleep he was sober again, simply watching her sleep.  
It felt good to have her close, though they hadn't been sexually intimate since that first night and morning her presence and teasing helped soothe his instincts and somehow it helped him add another layer of control those instincts, and the beast within.  
He was dozing lightly when Kasumi began to stir again and he could feel a strong sadness over the bond.  
“Sumi, why so sad?”  
He could feel her trying to shield her emotions, then after a few moments giving up as he had already sensed it, opting for burrowing her face in his chest.  
“Why can't I just love you?”  
Takeshi was genuinely confused by her question.  
“Hmm?”  
“I have tried you know, but somehow I can't... It would be so much easier if I could...”  
Slowly her ramblings and the mixed emotions over the bond began to make sense and Takeshi burrowed his face in her hair.  
“It's not supposed to be. We both know that. If we were to fall in love in that way it would only make things harder, it would only end up hurting us both.”  
“I know... Still... I wish I could...”  
Takeshi sighed deeply and pulled her closer, he understood where she was coming from, he had felt the same from time to time.  
Felt that it would be so much easier if they could just be everything for each other, but even before the change he had known that it could never be.  
“As have I. Your strength, intelligence and loyalty, it's what I value the most in a partner, and yet my heart refuses to see you as anything but a sister.”  
He shifted his position slightly, allowing her to feel that he closeness had left him quite hard.  
“My body though is quite a different story...”  
The obvious hard on and the teasing complaint made Kasumi break down into giggles and soon they were both laughing at the mess that was their lives.  
When she slid her hand down his belly he sucked in a sharp breath, and released it with a pleased moan as she wrapped her fingers around him and gave a good squeeze.  
The sound quickly morphed into a needy disappointment as she let go and pulled back a bit.  
“Please...”  
He was not beyond begging for her touch to return.  
“Nah, I think I rather watch you take care of things yourself.”  
Opening his eyes to look at her revealed a devious smile that told him beyond any doubt she would not help him take care of his now painfully hard erection, so with a sigh he took himself in hand while she watched with avid curiosity.  
“Now that's hot...”  
He could feel her eyes on him, and her arousal from what she was seeing and it quickly brought him to the edge.  
“Kage, look at me.”  
Her tone was soft but Takeshi obeyed without though and locking eyes with her pushed him over the edge. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Paths_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

After spending the better part of two years teaching Kasumi the ways of the Mother he could understand why Hisao-hanshi had always seemed so tired, but finally the Mother has said to prepare for the trial of blood, while less risky than the blood-curse that had been used on him it still carried risks and the rituals in preparing for it was rather elaborate, weeks of seclusion, purification and meditation.  
It was two days left to the new moon and the beginning of the trial when the wolf-sentinels that roamed the territory alerted him that a stranger had entered their territory and was approaching the entrance to the caves.  
Takeshi went out to meet the intruder, he had to make sure there was no interruptions or interference to the trial.

But when he found the intruder it was not what he had expected, it was a petite young woman, maybe 20-25 years old with dark ebony skin and tiny braids decorated with bone beads cascading down her back, reaching well below her knees.  
The black hair glinting with blue reflexes in the slight moonlight.  
Golden eyes with slit pupils only acted as confirmation to what he was feeling, she was a Blessed.  
As he was about to speak she bowed her head and addressed him.  
“Chosen one, I am Sarisha, last of the Sabre-tribe, Blessed by the Mother of all and I have been summoned by Her to administer the Trial of Blood.”  
Takeshi nodded and slowly shifted into the form of the wolf before addressing her.  
_“I am Takeshi, Kage of the Kiryu, wielder of the Kiryu-no-Ryuken, chosen Champion of the Mother. As I reveal myself under the moon so will you!”_  
It was all rituals and tradition, he did not mind.  
The woman, Sarisha, nodded and began to shift, short black fur began to cover her body and in the light of the moon the markings of a leopard faintly reflected.  
As her teeth grew into long, slightly curved fangs it became obvious that the tribe she had mentioned, the _Sabre_ referred to the sabre-toothed cats of ancient times.  
Though she was obviously a hybrid as she lacked the stocky build of the sabre-toothed cats and her fangs also reflected this with their slender appearance.  
He mentally nodded and welcomed her into the den and the Sanctuary of the Mother before shifting back and stepping inside.

“Chosen one, I need to purify myself before I enter the sanctuary.”  
“Of course, but please, call me Take.”  
Sarisha nodded and followed him to the storeroom to pick a soap and make some conditioner for her long hair.  
“I think you might like this one.”  
Takeshi offered her a soap made with shea butter and Monoï oil, a strongly scented oil made from coconut oil and Tiaré flowers.  
“I do, you have excellent taste.”  
“Will you be washing your hair as well?”  
The intricate braided style probably required some special care.  
“Yes, I will undo it to clean myself properly.”  
“You will need something for your hair as well then, this soap is not very kind to it.”  
Takeshi turned to her for a moment and looked at her hair.  
“May I touch your hair?”  
He was unsure how she would react to him touching her so he opted for taking the safe route and asking her.  
“Of course.”  
After getting a feel for her hair he picked the usual conditioner base they all used and one of the small bottles of herb infused apple vinegar.  
“This should do the trick.”  
“Thank you.”  
She gave him a slight nod as she took the basket with bathing supplies.  
“Would you like some assistance with your hair?”  
Takeshi had worn micro braids on occasion so he knew just how much of a hassle it could be to undo the tiny braids, and hers were unusually small.  
“Please, it would be much appreciated.”  
“Do you want me to fetch Kasumi to help you or would you be okay with me doing it?”  
“No, she should not be disturbed. It does not bother me if you assist.”

Back in the main room Takeshi took a seat behind her and began helping her undo the braids, carefully removing the bone beads first.  
“That's a clever tool.”  
He noticed that she was using a hooked bone needle similar to a crochet needle to quickly undo the tiny braids.  
“Unfortunately I only have one.”  
“I think I can mimic that.”  
Taking one of the diamond files he used for his nails he allowed his shift to slip and reveal the claws and he quickly filed them down so they were pointy, but no longer had any sharp edges, allowing him to use them in a similar way to how she used her tool.  
“You are a skilled shifter.”  
“Thank you, I have very little to compare myself with.”  
“To be able to alter only a small aspect of one's form is a sign of excellent control.”  
“If you say so.”  
She laughed at the diplomatic reply and they continued to unravel her braids in silence.  
“Would you like help washing your hair as well?”  
“Please.”  
Takeshi showed her the way to the spring and waited outside for her to let him know she was ready to have him help her.  
When she called for him he entered and found her sitting on one of the small stools with her back toward him and he instantly noticed the intricate design on her back, a mix between scarification and tattoo.  
The design was a mixture of leopard spots, and geometric patterns that reminded him of a mandala.  
“Beautiful work.”  
She didn't respond so he got to work on washing her hair, then rinse it with the herbal infusion and work the conditioner into the long curls.  
Hopefully he would be able to talk to her about the tattoo and scarification work later.

“There, all done.”  
“Thank you.” _  
_ “You're welcome. Just call if you need anything else.”  
“I will.”  
Before he had a chance to leave she stood up and walked over to the spring, giving him an excellent view of her back, then profile as she climbed into the water. _  
_ When he stepped into the common room Amarok tutted at him, and his rather obvious reaction to seeing Sarisha naked. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Paths_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“No you can't, it would not be proper!”  
Sarisha bared dainty fangs at Takeshi and he was struggling not to snarl back at her, she was only trying to defend the traditions she had been raised with.  
It was the night of the new moon and she was trying to make him leave the sanctuary so that she could administer the Trial of Blood to Kasumi.  
He couldn't help being impressed by her courage though, he was significantly larger, and stronger than her, not to mention pure alpha, and she didn't hesitate to bare her fangs in challenge.  
“I don't care if it's not proper, my place is at her side.”  
_**“Children please.”**_  
The voice of the Mother made them both pause and turn toward the annex with the soul tree, though Sarisha was noticeably shaken, her eyes wide in shock.  
_**“Young Saber, I know this is not how it is usually done, but he is my Chosen, my Champion, and hers. He will be permitted to be there for the ceremony.”**_  
Sarisha spoke rapidly in her own language before bowing to Takeshi in apology, baring her neck to him.  
Leaning in he gently dragged his fangs along her neck, accepting her apology.  
“You were only defending your traditions, what you have been taught. And I must say, you have courage to face me like that.”  
Sarisha blushed slightly at the praise before hurrying over to Kasumi to start the trial.

Takeshi noted both similarities and differences in the rituals for the trial and the rituals for the curse used on him, the herbs used were the same and blood was mixed into the herbal draught, the first major difference was that for him there had been large amounts of Amarok's blood while for Kasumi there was only a few drops of blood, both hers and Sarisha's.  
The second big difference was that where he had ingested the mixture this mixture was poured into a shallow hole in the ground next to the soul-tree and a crystal seed dropped into it before covering it, moments later a single vine grew from the seed and soon it held one of the small starfruit vials, but unlike the one he had picked for Shani this one was a deep blood red and the glow radiated the power of pure life.  
Sarisha picked the vial from the vine and as she did the voice of the Mother chimed in the flowers of the wisteria.  
_**“Chosen one, come, grant your blood to the blessed vine.”  
**_

Takeshi did as She asked of him, drawing his palm over the the edge of his Ryuken he allowed the blood to fall to the ground, painting the twisted stem and roots of the vine in red.  
As the crystalline plant greedily absorbed the blood a second fruit grew, this time a shimmering white opal that made him think of the arctic winter.  
_**“Take it and infuse it with your soul.”  
**_ Carefully picking the fruit he reached within and wrapped the vial in his power, slowly pushing it into the liquid within, as the energy settled the opaline crystal began to emit a fiery glow and a pleased note could be felt more than heard from the old tree.  
Sarisha handed her vial to Kasumi and nodded for her to drink its contents, once the vial was emptied she nodded for Takeshi to do the same and soon both vials were empty and Kasumi fell into a deep sleep in the soft moss covering the ground under the tree.  
_**“It is done, now she will rest here in the inner sanctuary and on the night of the full moon she will either perish, or awaken as one of the Blessed. And I am sorry my chosen, but until the full moon rises your presence will not be permitted.”**_  
Takeshi gave a slight bow as he and Sarisha exited the annex and the moment they stepped outside the entrance sealed up behind them, thick vines covering it completely.  
“She is strong. Stronger than any I have performed the trial on. I have no doubt she will awaken as one of us.”  
He could feel Sarisha's hand on his shoulder as she spoke, offering what support she was able to. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_New Paths_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

A soft knock at the bone plate that hung on the wall outside the entrance to the cavern that Takeshi had made his room brought him from his meditation.  
He estimated it was around midnight and reaching out with his senses he could feel Sarisha standing there, her scent, thick with embarrassment and apprehension awoke his curiosity and made him wonder what brought her to his room.  
“Come on in Sarisha.”  
After a few moments he called for her to enter and as she did his jaw nearly dropped as she stood before him as bare as the day she was born.  
She walked up to the fur covered shelf that served as his bed and knelt down in front of him, her eyes were still downcast as she spoke up.  
“Chosen one, as the last of the Saber-tribe I come before you to ask a great favor. Will you hear my plea?”  
She sat silently waiting for his response and he found himself wondering just what kind of favor would bring this kind of behavior.  
“Speak.”  
He gave her a slight nod when she raised her head to look at him.  
“As I have told you I am the last of the Sabers, the blood has been lost and even in me it is faint.”  
He nodded for her to continue.  
“Since my birth the elders have searched for a suitable mate, but none has been found, no one that carried the blood needed, for I alone can not continue the bloodline, unless a mate can be found to strengthen my blood the blood of my children will not be strong enough to carry the form of the Sabre-cat.”  
As her voice carried of into nervous ramblings Takeshi began to suspect what she would ask of him and he would be lying to himself if he said he was not willing to grant her favor if it was indeed what he suspected.

“Calm yourself and ask what you came to ask.”  
He fought to suppress a smirk as her scent spiked with nervousness.  
“You are the Chosen, the Mother has given your blood the strength of all her children. If you...” Her voice trailed of and she shook her head and steeled herself before speaking up again.  
“If you were to sire a child by me that child would be a true, full-blooded Saber. Able to carry on the bloodline to its own offspring. So I offer my body to you, hoping for a fruitful joining.”  
Her words carried the tone of ritual formality and she fidgeted slightly as she waited for his response, carefully watching him, trying to gauge his reaction.  
Takeshi leaned back against the cave wall, bringing forth the Ryuken he placed it across his legs and closed his eyes as he considered Sarisha's request, and offer.  
She was a beautiful young woman and apart from the occasional tryst with Kasumi to take the edge off he had not had the opportunity for intimacy, especially not that kind of intimacy, for several years so it was a very tempting offer, but he had doubts, concerns that she might not be entirely willing, merely acting out of obligation and duty.  
Taking a deep breath he wrapped her in his aura to ensure that he would sense any falsehood or hesitation before voicing his concern.

“I know the weight of duty, and this is not something that should be done out of obligation. So answer me honestly, do you truly wish to offer yourself to me, out of desire, not obligation?”  
He could feel her emotions shifting through her aura before settling on determination tainted by embarrassment as she began to shift into her beast-form.  
_“The Blessing allows for no falsehood as one soul speaks to another. It is true that obligation motivates me to offer what I would not have otherwise, but it is also true that my reasons for not offering it would not be a lack of desire.”_  
Her voice was light, like a silver bell in his mind and he knew her words to be true.  
“Then come, let's bring the Sabers back to life.”  
He beckoned her with a smirk and as she climbed into the furs her scent spiked with a heady spice that instincts knew to be desire.

As the days passed it quickly became obvious that their joinings bore fruit and Takeshi learned that female blessed who were able to shift not only shared gestation period with their animal forms but also tended to bear _litters_ if they did.  
Sarisha she wasn't showing quite yet, but he could clearly see the tiny life-flames and they told him that she was carrying triplets, twin boys and a girl.

 


	7. Rebirth

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Rebirth_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

As the eve of the full moon came Takeshi and Sarisha walked down the tunnels leading to the Sanctuary and Takeshi could not help but to worry.  
Kasumi was strong, but strength was not the only thing needed to survive this trial, and though less risky than his own blood-curse there was still a very real risk that she might not awaken.  
When they entered the inner sanctuary the sight of Kasumi made him pause for a moment, during the past 16 days she had changed, as if someone had turned back time.  
She looked just like how he remembered her that fateful day when it all had started, when they had celebrated her 20th birthday in Miami.  
Her hair that would normally end mid back now curled around her ankles and the previously rather flat, black color had deepened and taken on a slightly bluish tint.  
Sarisha walked over to Kasumi and carefully turned her over and after a quick inspection she turned to Takeshi.  
“I believe she will wake soon, these changes would not have manifested if she had failed the trial.”  
Takeshi took a seat under the wisteria, his back leaning against the gnarled, twisted trunk and carefully pulled Kasumi into his lap to wait for her to awaken.  
As he looked at her he could see her features shifting subtlety, her cheekbones became slightly sharper and her lashes grew longer.  
Nails became more claw-like and took on a silvery hue with purple tint and the slight shift of her jaw and lips told him that her teeth was changing into a more fanged appearance.  
“She is becoming even more beautiful. She will no doubt make a magnificent Blessed.”  
Sarisha offered her opinion as she watched them from across the small room.

Kasumi groaned as a rhythmical pounding sound drew her from her sleep and an overpowering floral scent invaded her senses, but below it she could smell the spicy musk and warm woods that she knew to be Takeshi.  
Opening her eyes caused instant regret as the light blinded her and she quickly covered her eyes with her hands and tried to sit up straight, but a hand on her shoulder stopped her and held her still.  
_“Easy nee-chan, remember, it takes a while to get used to the new senses. Don't try to speak out loud yet.”  
_ Strong but gentle hands carefully moved her hands from her face and cradled her head, covering her ears. _  
“Start with your hearing, listen to the sound of our hearts, our breathing. Focus on the sounds and push them to the back of your mind, like turning down the volume on a speaker.”  
_ Kasumi was suddenly very grateful for the silent communication as she realized that the loud pounding she was hearing was actually hers and Takeshi's heartbeats and that the slightly fainter one must be Sarisha.

Takeshi had told her about the stronger senses but she had not realized that it would be this loud, this bright and that even the subtle scents of the Sanctuary burned her nose and made her want to sneeze.  
_“Everything is so loud, overwhelming.”_  
Her thoughts carried a pleading tone and Takeshi wrapped his aura around her to help her focus and block out everything else.  
_“Ssh, ochitsuite. Relax and focus on our heartbeats, remember when Hisao-hanshi taught us how to synchronize our pulse and breathing.”  
_ As Takeshi held on to Kasumi he could feel her pulse slowing down and matching his own.  
_“Good, now listen to the sounds of our hearts, our breath, push them to the back of your mind, make them fade away.”_  
After a while he could feel her relax and she slowly nodded.  
_“It's getting better. But the scents still burn.”  
“Don't worry. It will get better.”  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Rebirth_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

I took several hours before Kasumi was able to speak and move around without becoming overwhelmed by the intensity of her new senses.  
“Let's have a look at you.”  
“Hmpf...”  
Kasumi wasn't all too pleased when Takeshi pulled her to her feet and started walking around her, inspecting her new appearance.  
“You look so young again.”  
“Oh? I do?”  
“Mhm, you look like you did when you were 20. And your hair has changed color, it's much deeper black now, and richer somehow, almost a bit blueish.”  
Gently cupping her chin he tilted her head to get a closer look at her eyes.  
“And your eyes are amber now. And you have slit pupils, like a cat.”  
That observation rewarded him with a brilliant smile, she had always envied him for his eye color.  
“And I do believe your bite might actually be worse than your bark now. Those fangs may be dainty but they are definitely sharp.”  
She had the same double fanged anatomy as he did, but hers were more slender, and curved which gave them a dainty, but deadly appearance.  
Acting on a whim he leaned in and stole kiss before nipping at her lip to encourage her to use her fangs on him and she responded instantly, drawing a few drops of blood.  
Sarisha's surprised look made them both laugh and Takeshi quickly explained.  
“Sumi and I may act like siblings most of the time, even call each other brother and sister, but we are not related by blood. We were raised together as if we were siblings, and most assumed we were due to similarities in our colors, age and our names.”  
“I see.”  
“We may have been raised as siblings, but we were constantly reminded that we were not. There were those who took every opportunity to remind us that Takeshi was not blood.”  
Kasumi added with a hint of temper in her voice.  
“And yes, our relationship is sexual at times.”  
Sarisha just nodded to the explanation and Takeshi turned his attention back to Kasumi.

Carefully taking her hand he inspected her fingers, now tipped with deadly claws.  
Side to side with his own hers looked almost frail, but he had no doubt they were just as tough as his own, they also had a more pronounced curve, like the claws of a cat and they looked wickedly sharp.  
“Delicate, but deadly, just like you.”  
She huffed at the teasing compliment, but it quickly turned into a startled yelp as Takeshi stepped around her and ran his hand along the long slender tail behind her, she had obviously not noticed she had one.  
It's was the same intense black as her hair, and looked a lot like a lion's tail but the tuft at the end was much longer than a lion's.  
“Oh, I have a tail!”  
Takeshi snickered at the reactions before gently running his hand along her tail.  
“Oi! Don't touch it like that!”  
There was a strong spike of arousal in her scent and over the bond.  
“Sensitive, isn't it?”  
He didn't stop right away, paying her back for all the times she had played with his tail while he was relaxing in his unrestrained form.  
“Okay, okay. I promise I won't play with your tail again...”  
“No need to go that far. Just please, remember this in the future.”

Taking a step back Takeshi slowly guided Kasumi into her first full shift which revealed a large, but slender, black feline.  
Unlike his wolf form her form obviously consisted of several different species, showing traits from cheetah, jaguar, leopard, lion and cougar in her slender form and solid black coloring, and the slender fangs was longer than any of the great cats, much to Sarisha's delight, as it proved that the trial of blood had passed the Saber-blood onto Kasumi, effectively making her one of the Saber-tribe.

“You both truly are a blessing to us, not only have you sired a new generation of true Sabers, but the trial has blessed us with another fertile female.”  
Sarisha was all but glowing in her joy over the events of the past few weeks.  
**“Nani!?”**  
Kasumi spun around and looked at them with wide eyes.  
“You slept with him?”  
She asked Sarisha while pointing rather rudely at Takeshi and without waiting for a reply she turned on him.  
“You knocked her up?”  
Both Takeshi and Sarisha nodded with a smile, though Takeshi's was more of a smirk if anything .  
“I don't believe it, here I go away for two weeks and when I get back they tell me I'm gonna be an aunt.”  
Kasumi was ranting to herself while pacing back and forth, suddenly she stopped with a wide grin,  
“I'm gonna be an aunt!”  
She cried as she threw herself around Takeshi's neck before suddenly stepping back and slapping him, hard, with her new strength it was enough to knock him to the ground and he looked up to to find himself face to face with a furious snarling face, part human, part saber-toothed cat.  
“ **Hentai!** What the hell are you thinking! She is much too young!”  
Her claws was digging deep wounds in his shoulders and fangs were snapping at his face, but the feeling he was getting through the bond was not rage or even anger but fear bordering on panic and he realized she must be going through something similar to what he did, losing control to the new power inside her.  
“Get back, she is losing herself!”  
He warned Sarisha as he shifted halfway and knocked Kasumi over, quickly using his bulk and strength to keep her down.  
_“Gomen...”_  
A silent plea for forgiveness was all he gave before using the bond to force his way into Kasumi's mind and instantly the struggle ceased. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Rebirth_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Takeshi found Kasumi's mindscape in turmoil, the usually tranquil Japanese garden was being savagely torn at by a raging storm.  
The dark clouds covered the stars and moon, the only light came from the frequent lightning-bolts cutting across the scene, but even they were tainted with darkness.  
In the distance he could see an enormous black cat trying to tear down the pagoda in the center of the garden and as it got closer the lightning intensified and seemed to drive it back for a moment.  
Suddenly he wanted to slap himself.  
The sudden darkness, the raging storm, it was the manifestation of Arashi and Kuragari, Kasumi's twin wakizashi and they were indeed trying to protect the pagoda from the beast.

“ _Kiryu-sama.”  
_ He called for the dragon as he began moving towards the pagoda, his aura began to flare around him as he released the seals that bound it, if Arashi and Kuragari did not recognize him their energies would lash out against him as well.  
As he drew the Ryuken he could feel Kiryu manifest behind him.  
_**“Easy there whelp, the beast must be subdued without harming it, any harm done to it is harm done to Kasumi as well.”**_  
The dragon cautioned him as he moved closer with his blade drawn.  
_“I know, but I will_ _ **not**_ _see her consumed by that beast, I would rather she died by my hand than suffer that fate!”  
_ The dragon huffed as she placed a clawed hand on his shoulder.  
_**“Easy, you are not thinking clearly. That beast is just like your own, a manifestation of your dark impulses and the power you have gained. You are still thinking as Takeshi, Kage to Kasumi Kiryu. That is not all you are, you need to think as Takeshi, the one chosen by The Mother. Fight fire with fire, whelp!”**_  
Takeshi paused for a moment to consider Kiryu's words and suddenly he understood.  
The blessed had a strict hierarchy of dominance and submission, challenges of power determined who became dominant and who would submit and accept the stronger as their leader.  
If he used his own beast to challenge Kasumi's beast and force it to submit it would obey his commands, at least for a while before trying to challenge him again.  
_“Domo, Kiryu-sama.”_

Reaching into himself he pushed some of his power against the seals that kept the beast locked up and steeled himself as the primal force poured out from his soul and into Kasumi's mindscape.  
Turning towards the shadowy beast he wrapped it in his aura, forcing it to look at him.  
“Subdue it and make it submit, but try not to cause undue harm as it is linked to my sister and make sure that building is not damaged.”  
The beast looked at him for a moment before it nodded and he could feel its agreement, though it had proven itself capable of speech it rarely ever spoke.  
As the beast charged its counterpart, knocking it over and away from the pagoda, Takeshi ran toward the small building and the life-flame he could clearly see inside.  
As he entered he found Kasumi cowering behind the small shrine at the back and as she noticed him enter she threw herself around his neck.  
“ **Yokatta!** What the hell is that thing? How can it be here, in my mindscape?”  
There was both relief and panic in her voice, but that was understandable, nothing was supposed to be able to enter ones mindscape, he was only able to do so because of the bond they shared as dantai.  
“Easy, calm, focus on your breathing.”  
Once her breath slowed down and she focused he began explaining what was happening.  
“It's a manifestation of the darker side of the blessing, it seems it only manifests in rare cases, in those that already possess powers beyond those of a normal person.”

Takeshi paused with a growl as a searing pain tore through his shoulder, looking outside he spotted his beast getting up with blood pouring from a smoldering wound on its shoulder.  
He knew this feeling though, it was the energy of Arashi, his beast must have been struck by the lightning generated by Kasumi's weapon.  
“Sumi, you need to recall Arashi and Kuragari, they can't recognize that the beast is a part of me and they are striking indiscriminately.”  
Another strike forced him to his knees and he turned to Kasumi with a snarl.  
“Now Kasumi! Any damage done to those beasts is damage done to us!”  
His use of her full name startled her into action and with a gasp she ran to the doorway and raised her hands, calling out to her blades they began to take form in her hands and the raging storm abated, but the beasts continued their battle with renewed vigor.  
And then, as suddenly as it had started it was over, his beast standing over its opponent, fangs covering its neck and a deep growl demanding submission.

When he withdrew from Kasumi's mindscape he was greeted by a very worried Sarisha as well as Amarok and a few of the wolves.  
“See girl, I told you they would be fine. The Chosen possessed power beyond most blessed even as he was dropped on my doorstep, even as his soul was well on its way back to the Mother.”  
“But there's so much blood...”  
Amarok's words did little to calm the concerned mother to be.  
“Don't worry Sarisha, I heal fast. See, it's barely bleeding anymore.”  
Takeshi showed her his shoulder where the wound had already started healing rapidly.  
“What happened Isso?”  
It was quite obvious to Takeshi that Amarok was concerned as well, he just hid it a lot better than Sarisha did.  
“I had to release my beast to subdue hers, it got injured in the fight.”  
While Takeshi reassured them that he would be fine Amarok turned and looked at Kasumi's still sleeping form.  
“I am curious however as to why she developed a beast as well, the Trial of Blood should not have caused something like that to happen.”  
A deep exhale from Takeshi drew the attention back to him before he spoke in response to Amarok's query.  
“It's nothing with the rituals causing it, it never was. It is our weapons that are the cause.”  
To emphasize his words Takeshi drew his blade out of the air in front of him and placed it in his lap.  
“This is the Kiryu no Ryuken, Dragon-blade of the Kiryu and Kiryu-sama is the Ryujin of the Shadow-flame. And although she is referred to as a Ryujin, dragon-god, she is in fact not entirely dragon, her mother was a dragon, her father a shadow, one of the oldest species of elemental demons.”  
As Amarok and Sarisha sat down in front of him he lifted the Ryuken and summoned its power setting it aflame with the black flames of the dragon.  
“This blade is forged from the very body of Kiryu-sama, her bones, scales, claws and fangs, using her blood and flames they were bonded with brightmetal, demonic silver, one of the few metals that can harm all forms of demonic creatures, including lesser gods.”  
Takeshi drew his hand along the razor-sharp edge, cutting into his palm and painting the blade with his blood.  
“The blade carries a small part of its creators demonic spirit within, together they choose the wielder and once chosen the spirit of the blade merges with the very soul of its wielder. This taint of demon spirit when exposed to the pure life-force that is The Mother created something new, a creature of darkness and pure instinct.”  
Holding the blade in front of him he called the flames again, burning away the blood before sheathing the blade back into nothingness and looking at the two in front of him.

“But Isso..”  
Amarok started and then paused for a moment before continuing.  
“Isso, that explains why a beast formed within you, but that does not explain your sister.”  
Takeshi turned to Kasumi's sleeping form and carefully drew her blades from her soul, growling low as their energies crackled and burned his hands before he placed them on her torso and the blades settled down.  
“She has not drawn her blades since coming here, but she too wields demonic blades. They are Arashi and Kuragari, Storm and Darkness.“  
With a deep breath he began to tell the legend of the blades.

There was once two powerful demons that courted the same female, legend says she was a true Lilim, a daughter born of Lilith herself, making her a highly sought after mate and to gain her favor they each forged a soul-blade for her.  
Arashi, was forged by a Tempest granting it the aspects of wind and lightning.  
Kuragari, was forged by a Shadow granting it the aspects of darkness, and balance.  
In the end she took them both as mates and the blades became twins.

Closing his eyes and taking a few deep breaths he continued.  
“I'm not sure though the exact aspect that causes it, if any form of demonic weapon or taint would cause it, or if it's linked specifically to the shadow aspect since both Kasumi's Kuragari and my Kiryu no Ryuken carries that aspect, and the beasts do carry many similarities with lesser shadow-demons.”  
Amarok nodded and lost himself in thought while Sarisha chose to speak up.  
“Have you asked the Mother about this?”  
“I have, many times. But She tells me that some answers lie beyond even her realm and that I will have to find them myself.”  
With that Takeshi dismissed her and turned to Kasumi, touching her blades he dismissed them back to her soul before picking her up and carrying her to her room. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Rebirth_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Take..?”  
Kasumi's head hurt and she felt weaker than she ever had before, her senses were muddled and she could not pinpoint Takeshi's presence.  
Takeshi was roused from his meditation by Kasumi's voice calling for him, carrying a hint of confusion and fear.  
“Easy sleepyhead, I am right here.”  
He pulled in his aura that had been blanketing Kasumi while she slept as he got up and moved over to sit on her pallet.  
“It's okay, you are safe.”  
He helped her sit and pushed some of his aura through the bond to help alleviate the pain that was pulsing through the connection.  
“What was that? I thought the trial was supposed to be safer? That those beasts could only be created by the blood-curse.”  
As expected Kasumi wanted answers and with a deep breath he told her what she needed to know.  
“That's what we believed, turns out it had nothing to do with the how, it's all about the who. We gained those beasts because our souls carry a demonic taint from our blades. The pure life-force of the Blessing somehow caused that tainted spark to come alive. As far as I can tell the taint has become lesser shadow-demons. Primal, driven by instinct and dark emotions. We will always have to work on controlling them or they will be able to control us. The stronger we grow the stronger they will grow.”  
Takeshi picked Kasumi up and shifted on her pallet so he was sitting at the head-end, leaning against the cave wall he pulled her into his lap.  
“Sleep now, I will help you recover. Tomorrow we start the real training.”  
While she slept he carefully fed her with his energy and thought about how to help her gain control over what she had become.

When she woke up again she cried out in pain and confusion as she lost the control over her senses as she woke up.  
“Ssh, easy. Remember what I told you about controlling your senses.”  
Kasumi nodded with her hands clamped over her ears as she struggled to dim out the sounds.  
Once she felt comfortable again they joined the others in the main room.  
“Isso, Sumi, good to see you both up and about.”  
“Good morning to you too worrywart.”  
Kasumi greeted Amarok with a teasing quip and a hug while Sarisha carefully prodded Takeshi's shoulder too make sure it was properly healed.  
“See, I told you I would heal fast.”

Leaning in he gently nipped at her shoulder before sneaking his hand under her shirt and brushing it over her belly, it was still too early to feel any bump, but he could feel the life force within.  
It wouldn't take long before she started showing though, courtesy of the short gestation period of her animal form, only 3 months, and the fact that she was carrying triplets.  
She had explained that toward the end of the pregnancy, roughly about a week before delivery she would take her beast form and birth the offspring, and she would be staying mostly in that form while nursing the cubs.  
She had also warned him that their instincts may cause some trouble once the cubs were born as her instincts would demand she hide and protect the blind cubs, which might clash with his protective instincts.

“May I?”  
Kasumi's soft question startled both Takeshi and Sarisha slightly but they quickly gathered themselves and Sarisha nodded softly.  
“Of course. You can only feel their energy for now though.”  
Kasumi gently placed her hand next to Takeshi's and after a few moments she could feel a flicker of energy that felt slightly familiar, and yet different, Takeshi's children.  
“I'm really gonna be an aunt...”  
“Well, technically they will be **your** aunt and uncles.”  
“Oh shush, I don't care what the _Koseki_ says, they will be my cute little niece and nephews.”  
“Koseki?”  
Sarisha's confused tone made Takeshi and Kasumi dive into explaining the laws and traditions surrounding Koseki, the Japanese family registry, and soon they diverted into explaining other things about Japanese culture, a debate that didn't stop until Amarok came out and placed a stack of plates on the table, signaling that food was about to be served.  
The fact that the food that was brought out was the usual dinner fare made Kasumi give Takeshi a questioning look.  
“Yes, it's dinner time.”

“Sumi, I want you to carefully sort through the scents of the food, try to determine what has been used without looking or tasting. It will help your control.”  
Amarok had made him do similar tasks for training, picking up ingredients with a subtle scent under ones with a stronger one.  
Everyone started laughing when she took a whiff at one of the condiment bowls and started sneezing.  
“What hell is this?!”  
They had given her several subtle and hard to detect scents followed by a pile of freshly grated horseradish.  
“It's just horseradish.”  
Takeshi offered between bouts of snickering.  
“I hate you!”  
Kasumi was teary-eyed and sneezing at the strong smell, but it was an important lesson about being careful and not smelling something without subduing your senses first.  
She did realize the importance of the lesson though and it didn't take long before she was laughing as well.  
“Be glad you didn't learn that lesson the same way I did.”  
Takeshi offered with a snort, and as expected she was instantly alert and listening intently, waiting for him to tell the tale.

“Amarok had been to Fairbanks and picked up some food stuff to help keep me from getting bored with the stored food, and he asked me to check the food items for things like mildew or other molds before moving them to one of the store rooms.”  
Sarisha and Kasumi both nodded with rapt attention while Amarok was shaking slightly with repressed laughter.  
“This included checking any containers that were not vacuum sealed. So I checked them all, one by one, and wasn't paying much attention, senses on high as the scents I was looking for were subtle ones.”  
“Oh, let me guess, you found something not so subtle?”  
Kasumi was snickering at him, eagerly waiting to hear what had tripped him up.  
“Toward the end of the pile I came across a container of a gift Amarok had gotten me. A box of quality nattō for me to use to make my own.”  
Kasumi instantly broke down in laughter which pulled Amarok along as well.  
“The smell actually knocked him out for a while.”  
Amarok supplied between bouts of laughter.  
“What is this nattō?”  
Sarisha was curious so Takeshi headed to the kitchen and grabbed the container of nattō that he kept there.  
“Oh, it's that stuff you guys always have for breakfast.”  
Sarisha always ate porridge, chai tea and what looked like sweet, deep fried, dumplings, though, Takeshi guessed they would be more like doughnuts.  
“It is. Now be careful when smelling it, don't want you to get nauseated.”  
Sarisha tutted at him with a smile before leaning in and carefully smelling the contents of the bowl.  
“It's... Intense...”  
“Here try some.”  
Takeshi took some of the rice that was always served with every meal and put a bit of the nattō on top.  
“Hmm, it tastes better than it smells.”  
“It's really good for you if you think you can stomach it.”  
“I think I will.”  
She smiled and took another bite, which in turn caused a pleased ripple through Takeshi's aura and he reached down and gently brushed his fingers against her stomach.  
“My my. She's not even showing yet and you're in total mother hen mode. Sarisha, he is going to drive you bat shit crazy.”  
Kasumi's amused quip broke the moment and both of them turned back to her.  
“Oh, I don't know. I think it's rather sweet.”  
“You do now. But believe me, in a few months you won't think it's all that sweet anymore.”  
“I should be okay then, Saber females only carry for about 13 to 15 weeks before birthing our litters.”  
“Seriously?”  
“Mhm...”

Takeshi only listened with half an ear as the conversation drifted into what he vaguely classified as _girl talk_ , though he did pay enough attention to remember what was being said.  
He had learned over the years with the ladies of his unit that it was beneficial to his safety and general well being to not completely ignore the conversations.

Kasumi had a point though, the moment Takeshi was able to sense that Sarisha had conceived his protective instincts went into overdrive, his urge to protect her, to hunt and provide for her was nearly overwhelming at times.  
Sarisha was very understanding and patient with him so far, not complaining or turning him away when he offered morsels of food, or constantly wanted to place his hand over her belly, but chances were that she would become less tolerant as the pregnancy progressed, and his instincts would become increasingly demanding. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Rebirth_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

“Take, I will be retreating to the birthing chamber tonight.”  
“So it's time for these little rascals to come into the world.”  
Takeshi brushed his fingers over the taut skin of her distended belly and he could feel the cubs squirming around, they had been very active the past few days, 11 weeks had passed much faster than he had expected them to.  
“It is. Remember what I told you?”  
“Of course. I will watch on the monitor and when you are done cleaning them I will see if you feel comfortable enough to let me clean you and get rid of the soiled bedding.”  
“Good.”  
Takeshi turned with a low, warning, growl and fangs slightly bared when Kasumi approached the piles of furs that Takeshi had arranged to make sure he could keep Sarisha comfortable and it earned him an annoyed hiss and a slap on the arm.  
“Don't growl at your sister, she is allowed to come here.”

Sarisha's scolding caused him to voice a soft whine which in turn made both Sarisha and Kasumi coo at him.  
“Hmpf, these instincts are tough to control.”  
“Are you even trying?”  
Kasumi gave him a pointed look and indicated toward the way he kept his hands on Sarisha while at the same time shifting his body into a position that would allow him to pounce if someone tried to get too close.  
He looked at her for a moment before huffing and shaking his head with a smile.  
“Not really.”  
“See, I told you.”  
Kasumi tutted at him before turning to Sarisha with a brilliant smile.  
“Oh, I know. And I don't mind. His support has helped my own instincts a lot, and I have no doubt he will be an amazing father.”  
Sarisha indicated for Kasumi to join them and after a few soft growls warning her to be careful she managed to curl into Takeshi side and make herself comfortable.  
The happy sigh that was heard was not from her though, it was Takeshi, having Sarisha in his arms, feeling the cubs move under his hand, and the Kasumi curled into his side filled him with a deep sense of content.

“Take, pacing isn't going to make this any faster.”  
Kasumi teased him lightly as he once again began to pace in front of the screen that displayed the CCTV feed from the birthing chamber.  
It was a compromise between Sarisha's instinctive need to seek out a safe place and birth her cub's alone and Takeshi's protective instincts telling him not to leave her side.  
The fact that she had remained with him, and in her human form, until the very last moment spoke highly of how safe she felt in the den.  
“Come here, sit down.”  
She patted the furs next to where she was sitting and Takeshi took a seat with a grumble.  
“Easy, she's doing fine.”  
Sarisha had explained that it would probably take a few hours for her to birth her litter.  
“I know. I just can't help it.”  
“Take, do you love her?”  
The sudden question threw Takeshi off for a moment.  
“Of course I do. How could I not? She is in there giving birth to my children.”  
Kasumi sighed slightly.  
“Allow me to me rephrase.”  
“I know what you meant.”  
Takeshi interrupted with a bit of a laugh.  
“And no, I am not **in** love with her. I do care for her, and I do love her in a sense, but I'm not in love with her, and I have a feeling I never will be.”

Explaining the way he viewed love and various kinds of intimacy to Eriksson and the others had not been easy.  
Though, Eriksson was the who had understood it the easiest, she understood his view of love being love, and sex being sex.  
To Takeshi various types of love, and intimacies, were not bound together.  
For instance he did love Ramirez, but in a more platonic way, and at the same time he did feel a certain level of sexual attraction to him, but not as far as wanting to actually have sex with him, but he wanted to be intimate, touches, kisses.  
Adannaya had been almost the same, but in her case he did feel a strong sexual desire, but it was a desire she didn't share, and that had made things quite interesting, especially since she had a very hard time with any kind of intimacy, the kiss they had shared after the incident that killed one of the sled dogs had been the only time she allowed any intimacy beyond a quick peck.  
With Eriksson and Daniels there was an intense romantic love along with the sexual desire, a more typical _love_ as many would see it.  
With Kasumi there was also strong sexual desire, but his love for her was still not a romantic one, and his feelings and interactions with Sarisha was very similar.  
He had a feeling it would change once the cubs were born though, but somehow he knew it would never be a romantic love.

“Take, look, the first cub is coming!”  
His attention was instantly fully on the screen in front of him and even with Kasumi in his lap it was a struggle not to run to the birthing chamber to watch.  
2 hours later all 3 cubs were born and cleaned so Takeshi carefully approached with warm water and soft rags to see if she could tolerate him helping her get cleaned up.  
He was met with some rather defiant hisses and yowls but he sat down at the entrance and allowed her to calm down and after a few minutes he felt her bright presence in his mind, inviting him in, but warning him to move slowly.  
Using the rags he carefully washed Sarisha's sleek body, removing all birthing fluids before spreading a soft fur next to the pallet where she had birthed the litter.  
“Go on, move over so I can get rid of this soiled pelt. It will be much nicer in here if we remove it.”  
She moved slowly while keeping an eye on him as he gently picking the cubs up one by one and placing them next to her.  
“They are beautiful, perfect.”  
Takeshi gently allowed his energy to wash over, and through, the cubs, looking for any hint of problems but found nothing.  
As he placed the cubs back with her she instantly checked on them before laying down with a pleased purr.

He knew she was deep in her instincts, and she would remain in her animal form at least until the cubs opened their eyes which would take about 10 days, after that she and the cubs would be gradually joining them.  
As the cubs developed they would not need to nurse as frequently and she would gradually spend more time in her human form again.

He quickly removed the soiled bedding and moved some fresh material onto the platform before helping her move the cubs back.  
It was hard to leave though, he wanted nothing more than to stay, but Sarisha was not ready to have him around.  
He would be dropping by with food every day though, and to remove any waste from the basket by the door. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Rebirth_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

As expected it took nearly 2 weeks before Sarisha joined them in the main room just long enough to eat some regular food and talk a bit before going back to the cubs.  
“So, have you decided on any names for them?”  
“No, it is the Saber way to name a child on the day they take human form for the first time. Before that they are merely cubs.”  
“Ah, I see. Then that's how we will do it.”  
“You wish to name our female cub Shani, don't you?”  
“That obvious huh?”  
“It is not a typical Saber name, but I like it.”  
She sat in silence for a moment before nodding.  
“The first female cub to find her human form shall be named Shani in honor of her sire's tribe.”  
“First? I thought you only had one female cub?”  
Kasumi's surprised tone made Takeshi laugh, he had forgotten to tell her about the agreement he had made with Sarisha.  
“Oh, we do. But I have promised Sarisha that any time she wants another litter I will do my best to sire them. And apparently a cub from a later litter occasionally find its human form before its older siblings.”  
“Oh, I see.”

Time passed quickly between caring for the cubs and helping Kasumi work on her control, and before anyone really realized it 6 months had passed and Takeshi was once again watching Sarisha going through labor with their second litter, 3 female cubs this time.  
This time she was more accepting of Takeshi entering the birthing chamber as he smelled of their cubs, making him smell safe.  
He recalled their conversation the night she came to his bed, asking him to sire another litter, she shared his bed most of the time, but after his change Takeshi's seed was no longer viable unless he wanted it to be.  
It was apparently a trait shared by all blessed males, Takeshi really didn't mind, quite the contrary as it meant that any female partners he had would not need to use contraceptives if she didn't want to.

“ _Are you sure you're okay having another litter so soon?”  
“Yes, I'm sure. I would not have become fertile again if I was not ready. So stop worrying.”  
“You should know by now that I always worry.”  
_

The addition of the 3 cubs made life in the den even more hectic, but fortunately the blessed wolves were more than happy to help looking after the curious cubs, making sure they didn't get into too much trouble, while also teaching them plenty of safe trouble to get themselves into.  
  
“Well look at that, someone caught themselves a rodent.”  
Takeshi laughed as the oldest of the male cubs came into the room with some rather unidentifiable remains hanging at the corner of his mouth while his younger sisters jumped around trying to steal the morsel. _  
_

 

(¯`·._.··¸.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.,-(_Rebirth_)-,.-~*´¨¯¨`*·~-.¸··._.·´¯)

Kasumi watched with a heavy heart as Takeshi howled his pain and fury at the tree in the Sanctuary, it took everything she had to keep his pain from overwhelming her over the bond.

One year after the second litter Sarisha had retired to the birthing chamber for their third litter, but this time something went wrong, the contractions for the third cub of the litter didn't set in as they should, and by the time she managed to deliver it it was too late, the female cub was not breathing, her little heart unbeating and nothing they did could bring her back.

Amarok had stayed with Sarisha, watching over her and the other cubs while Kasumi followed Takeshi as he carried the dead cub to the Sanctuary.  
She watched as he screamed and howled at the Soul-tree, she struggled to carry as much of his pain as she could but it made very little difference as the ground before the tree parted to allow him to put the cub, her niece, to her final rest.  
_“I am truly sorry for this loss, but such is the way of life. It is rare among my blessed children, but it does happen. Even I can only go against the balance of life and death so much.”_  
The Mother's voice was soft, and as she spoke Takeshi sank to his knees in the soil of the inner sanctum.

Kasumi felt the energy of the Mother brush against her, inviting her to enter annex and she rushed over to Takeshi and put her arms around him.  
She didn't speak though, there were no words that could relay what she was feeling, no words that could soothe his pain.  
Hours later, when he slowly turned and started to trail kisses along her jaw she only held him tighter, and when the kisses turned desperate, almost violent, she didn't complain, instead she allowed him to vent his emotions on her.  
She knew he would never truly hurt her.  
The marks left by claws, fangs and inhuman strength would fade within hours, in a few days they would have vanished completely, the scar left by his pain, the death of the cub, would fade as well with time, but it would never vanish.

 

 


End file.
